Silk
by MusicBender
Summary: Katara goes out for a walk. Zuko goes out for a walk. Zuko meets Katara. Katara almost kills Zuko. Hmm... Where are we going with this? Read to find out! And mind the warning in big letters. WARNING TO NON ZUTARA FANS: DO NOT READ IF YOU DISLIKE ZUTARA!
1. Silk

**Silk**

* * *

**"OOMPH."** Their tiny raft bumped into a rock a few ways away from a small island. Zuko, who had been sitting with his knees drawn up to his chest, trying to stay awake to watch over the sleeping form of his uncle, jerked his head up and shook the sleep from his eyes. He took a moment to soak in their new surroundings, then, noticing the island about a half a mile away, guided to raft towards the beach, hoping that maybe he and his uncle could find some sort of respite from the past two weeks they had been out at sea.

When he finally reached the beach, he dragged the raft with his softly snoring uncle away from the water and lay down exhaustedly on the soft sand. The last thing he knew was the moon that was nearly full was shining down on him wrapping him in a comforting embrace of silver light. Then sleep crept upon him and stole him away to a dark dreamless realm, with no fire nation, no avatar, and no war, just a soft peaceful sleep.

* * *

**"MAN** I'm starving! When are we gonna stop we've been flying since yesterday!" Sokka complained loudly. The gang had been fleeing Azula for the past two weeks after meeting up with her, Ty Lee and Mai in the last town they had stopped in.

"Seriously Sokka, you've gotta get a grip on your hunger issues. You're the reason Azula found us in the first place!" Katara said annoyed.

"They woulda found us sooner or later, and we were low on supplies!" Sokka retorted standing up.

"Yeah, because you eat too much!" Katara shot back standing up as well.

"Sugar Queen's right you do eat too much Snuffles. Now stop rocking the bison I feel sick enough as it is." said irritated little Toph with her arms folded across her chest and her unseeing eyes staring towards them.

Sokka turned on her, "Hey, I-"

"Guys! Stop it I see an island ahead of us we could stop there for the rest of the night!" Aang yelled from Appa's head.

Sokka huffed but sat back down muttering to himself something about annoying little sisters. Katara threw him an angry glare then sat on the other side of the saddle next to Toph and looked up at the moon. It'll be full tomorrow night, she thought. She turned around and leaned over the edge of the saddle and stared down at the ocean. The light from the moon gave it a dark mysterious blue look that captured her gaze and held her mesmerized. She sighed deeply and rested her chin on her hand as she watched the gentle waves teased around by the wind.

* * *

**"AAAA!"** Appa landed heavily on the beach and Katara jerked awake unaware that she had even fallen asleep.

"Land finally!" Toph jumped out of the saddle and kissed the ground over an over again.

Appa groaned. "Hey! You try flying around in the total dark on a giant fluffy stink ball and see how you feel!" She snapped at him.

"Really Toph, must you be so mean?" Aang asked patting Appa's side. She crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow. "Yeah ya do," he said answering his own question, "Okay you guys, lets- uh, guys?"

Sokka and Katara were already fast asleep in their parkas and Toph was in the process of building her tent. Momo was nestled in Appa's fur and purring softly in a pleasant dream.

Aang shrugged. "This works!" He jumped into Appa's fur and snuggled close to him for warmth. "G'night Appa," The bison's snores answered him and Aang smiled. "G'night Toph."

"Whatever you say Twinkle Toes," she answered from within her tent. In a matter of a few minutes, the weary travelers were all fast asleep.

* * *

**_"WELL_**_ done brother. I knew you would choose wisely." _

"_No! I thought you'd changed!"_

"_You thought wrong."_

_That look she gave him, her eyes full of anger, frustration, hurt,-regret?_

"_Go! Save the avatar!" The look he had given him! His eyes were so hard and cold, a look he hoped never to get again from his uncle._

_"TRAITOR! As long as I am alive, brother, your days are numbered!"_

_Hot blue light shot from her fists, hot blue light- "AAARRGGG!!"_

Zuko's eyes shot open and he sat up abruptly panting heavily a cold sweat broke out all over his body. He reached up and touched his unscarred cheek reassuringly and sighed deeply then glanced over at his uncle. He continued to snore contently; totally unaware of the current state his nephew was in.

Zuko stood up and stretched, the moon was lower; dawn would come in about two hours. He checked his uncle again before he started out down the beach, maybe a nice long walk, and the soothing sound of the waves moving back and forth, to the beach, and back to the ocean, would calm his jumbled thoughts.

* * *

**_" I _**_lost my mother to the fire nation!" Tears poured from her eyes and down her cheeks._

"_I'm sorry, I guess that makes two of us." his voice, soft, sad, pain- longing? _

_She looked up with surprise and sniffed._

"_No! I thought you'd changed!"_

"_I have changed." His voice was soft again, but not the same as before. Hot bright flames shot towards her, and then she saw again, an instant replay in her mind, the image of her mother, burning alive. She screamed._

"MOM NO!" She woke up breathing hard and shivering from an internal cold.

"Katara?" Aang stared at her with big concerned eyes. She slowed her breathing and forced a smile.

"Just a bad dream Aang, go back to sleep." she said soothingly. He looked at her uncertainly.

"Are you sure?" he asked

"Yes I'm sure. I'll just take a little walk to clear my head; I'll be back soon okay?" she said.

"Be back soon, And-" he blushed slightly, "just make sure you're better when you get back."

Katara smiled semi-genuinely, then got up and started down the beach, breathing in the fresh, salty sea air. Looking at the moon she thought that dawn would arrive in a couple of hours. She removed her shoes and outer robe and stepped into the water. A pleasant shock ran through her body as her skin made contact with the cold. She waded waist deep into the water then closed her eyes and began to practice her bending. She breathed deeply and slowly, counting to nine with each breath until she forgot which number she was on. Soon, her breaths came slowly and easily and all she knew was that she was one with her element. There was no war, no fire nation, and no banished prince hiding behind a log watching her every move.

* * *

**THAT** girl! The one with the eyes, what was her name Katrina, Karenna? No, Katara. He mentally slapped himself. _How_ _could you forget! Hold on... why would I remember? _Said another part of his brain. He shook the thoughts from his head then scanned the beach for her friends. _What for? It's not like you're still hunting them. You can't help them either; they'll never trust you after what you did._ But as his gaze fell once again onto the form of the water bender, his jaw fell open as he was captivated by what he saw.

The silvery light of the moon cast itself upon her exposed skin, giving her a mysterious, dream like look. Her body moved gracefully with the water, as if she were a part of the ocean. Each lift of her hands, each sway of her hips, the ribbons of water so smooth and perfect; it all fit together in one silky motion after the other.

As he watched her, he suddenly realized he had moved towards her and before he could turn back, her eyes flew open at the sound of rustling and shifting stones.

"You!" she hissed ferociously when her eyes met his. Before he knew what had happened, she slapped him hard in the face with a water whip, causing him to stumble backwards. "You sick bastard! Aang almost died because you just had to try and gain back your stupid false honor!"

She approached him menacingly, and before he could get up, stepped down hard on his chest and held an ice dagger to his throat. "Give one good reason why I shouldn't slit your throat open right now," she spat, her blue eyes were as cold as the dagger she held to his naked neck, the look on her face froze his insides and he felt colder than he ever remembered in his life.

"You have every reason in the world to kill me," he said quietly, "And I have every reason in the world to die."

* * *

_**HUH?** _This stupid prince never ceases to surprise her. "Don't try anything on me Zuko, I was fooled by your stupid games in the catacombs but I won't fall for them again." Her voice quivered with the coldest of emotions; anger, hate, frustration.

"I swear on my honor, I won't hurt you or your friends." his voice was still quiet and he winced slightly as she pushed the dagger harder into his neck, puncturing the surface of the skin and drawing blood.

"Don't speak of honor, you've already proven multiple times you have none," she snapped. She felt him tense slightly underneath her foot and she tensed along with him, ready for any sort of attack he might have planned.

"Fine!" He swallowed, and his eyes squeezed shut for a quick moment as if trying to suppress- tears? "I swear on the grave of my mother, I won't hurt you or you're friends." He shot her a hard look. "Don't you dare say I didn't love her."

_Don't believe him! He used his mother to get to you once, he's doing it again!_

_If he didn't mean it he wouldn't have just swore on her grave. And look at him, he could have easily gotten out of this position; he's way stronger than you are._

_It's all part of his trick! Don't fall for it!_

"If you pull anything stupid-" she started.

"If I wanted to I woulda pulled it a long time ago!" he snapped irritably. She pressed the dagger to his throat and ran it downwards slightly. He sucked a quick breath then bit the inside of his bottom lip.

"No offense, but you are in no position to be talking to me like that," she snarled coldly.

"Really?" he smirked then before she could take in another breath, he had her arms pinned behind her back, and he held her down with his knee in her bare back. She gasped in surprise then anger.

_What did I tell you!? You can't trust- Oh gods he's seriously gotta stop doing that! _ Zuko had let her go and then lay back down on the sand looking at her surprised expression expectantly. "You were saying?"

* * *

_**STUPID** girl, she actually thought she had me._

He smirked at her silly expression.

_Hey, she looks kinda cute when she's mad. _He mentally kicked himself. _Whoa! Where the heck did that come from?!_

"I don't want to hurt you." he said turning his gaze to the moon. He brought his knees up and his arms to the back of his head as if she and him had just been there enjoying a moonlight night. He glanced over at her when she didn't move. "It's kinda cool out. You might wanna put your robe back on."

She gasped and looked down as if just noticing she was only wearing her gi bottoms and a cloth around her upper torso, and then hurried towards her robe, all the while keeping a watchful eye on Zuko.

* * *

_**WHAT** is this guy up to? _She thought as she tied her obi. _Maybe this time he's actually changed._

_Yeah right._

_Maybe you should at least listen to him._ But she remained wary of him all the same. She felt her side to make sure her water skin was full just in case she might need it then walked back to him. His gaze remained up at the moon but she could tell he knew she was there.

"You are so lucky," he said softly. She wasn't sure if he was talking about himself or her. "You're the way you are because of the different people in your life. I'm the way I am because of the people in mine." He sighed deeply and closed his eyes.

Katara looked at him puzzled. _This guy seriously needs to stop doing that!_ "What kind of people would let you become a monster?" she asked him. A pained look crossed his face.

"My mom. When she left me." Katara felt something in her chest twist painfully and she suddenly felt guilty for doubting him.

_Wait, you're feeling guilty after what he did? It's his own fault you don't want to trust him. _Nevertheless, the feeling in her chest remained.

"The difference between you and me is, when your mom died, you still had people that cared for you. Your brother, as brainless as he is, would gladly give his life for you. And your dad," he paused and looked at her, "you do have a father still, right?"

"I don't know," she said sadly, "He left to fight the fire nation a few years ago."

"I'm sorry." he said, "No doubt though, he loves both of you. My father," he paused and tilted the scarred side of his face towards her, "my father gave me this."

He watched her big blue eyes widen and grow even bigger.

_That sick twisted evil son of a hogmonkey! His own son!_ "How could he do such a thing? To his own son! And you still wanted him back?" she asked incredulously.

He nodded. "You have to understand, I was so confused. All I wanted was my father to love me, to accept me and not be ashamed that I was his son." His voice quivered slightly, "It was all false. Somewhere inside me, I knew it, but I wanted it so much to be true, I refused to think about what would happen when I returned with the Avatar." He took in a deep breath and let it out. "Even when Uncle proved that my father would never take me back, I didn't want to accept it. Until it was too late." He shuddered as they both remembered the fight in which Aang was killed. If she had used the water to heal his scar; she bit back the thought. "You're right, I have no honor. Not even false honor."

She rested her eyes on his face and felt something somewhere inside her change. All of a sudden, she was sure he was different; unlike Sokka, her instincts were almost always right. "No," she said softly. She crept towards him until she was right next to him and she touched his scarred cheek. He flinched but didn't pull away. "I was wrong; you have more honor now, than you ever could have received if you had delivered Aang to Ozai."

He put his hand over hers and gently removed it from his cheek as he sat up. "That's what Uncle said. Right now he's all have. All I need. And all I want. When the war's over, and when the Avatar," he stopped himself, "Aang restores balance, I'm gonna buy my uncle another tea shop. I think he'll like that." He smiled fondly as he remembered how happy his uncle had been with their shop in Ba Sing Se.

He turned and saw Katara looking at him with a look so different from the one she had had when she held the dagger to his throat. _She's so beautiful._ This time, there were no mental kicks or slaps. _She is._ Her long brown hair had come loose when she had been bending and the wind gently teased it across her face. Her eyes stood out against her dark skin, blue as the ocean and he felt himself slowly being drawn towards them.

She had never really paid much attention to his physical features, other than his scar; she had been too busy loathing him. But now, as she stared into his beautiful golden eyes hidden behind his black hair that almost came down to his shoulders, she noticed that he was actually a very handsome young man. She felt herself blush slightly and a feeling like when she had first met Jet welled up inside of her.

_No! Not again!_

Zuko saw her eyes shift uncomfortably away from his. Before he was sure of what he was doing, he had her face in his hands and his lips pressed against hers.

He felt surprise ripple through her body, but then she relaxed and kissed him back. She ran her finger through his hair as his thumb stroked her cheek.

_No, this is different. _Her heart finally exploded in her chest and she felt warmth fill her up from her toes to the ends of each hair on her head.

When they finally pulled away from each other, his hand stayed on her cheek and hers remained in his hair. When she opened her eyes, she saw the first rays from the sun had set a soft, golden glow around him, giving him an angelic look.

"I have to go." she murmured softly but she sat for a while longer, before both of them stood up. "What will you do?" she asked, "Since you're not chasing Aang any more."

He shrugged. "We'll just lay low and avoid Azula until the war is over I guess."

Katara thought for a moment. "You know, Aang needs a fire bending master." Zuko raised an eyebrow.

"I highly doubt they'll want to go anywhere with me," he chuckled, "The best way for me to help him is to avoid him."

"Consider it, they trust Iroh, Iroh trusts you, and-" she caught herself. _I trust you?_ "He really needs a teacher." The sun climbed steadily higher out of its hiding place and Katara imagined they must be all waking up by now.

"Maybe," he said, "I'll talk to Iroh. Then I'll find you guys." Katara nodded then turned and ran down the beach back towards their camp.

* * *

**"ZUKO** What happened! We were still on the water when I fell asleep." Iroh sat up on the raft grinning as his nephew made his way towards him.

"Good morning Uncle," Zuko said quietly sitting at the edge of the raft.

"A very good one I should say- What did you do to your neck?" He asked motioning towards the trickle of blood that ran down Zuko's neck.

Zuko touched it and looked at the blood on his fingers. He had forgotten about that. "I met up with the water bending girl." he looked at his uncle, "Katara." Iroh studied him closely but didn't say anything. "I didn't hurt her! We just talked, about, stuff." His nephew said awkwardly. "She wants you to teach the Avatar fire bending."

Without looking at his uncle, he knew he was grinning widely.

* * *

**"WHERE** have you been? We were worried sick!" Sokka exploded in her face. She pushed him aside and walked past him, leaving him sputtering angrily.

"We, being Snuffles. I told them you were fine, but you know him," said Toph with her usual smirk. Katara blinked at her, she was still a little dazed from her meeting with Zuko. "By the way, who was that you were with?"

"Huh?" Then she remembered Toph could feel these things. "Oh, um, that was-"

"Wait," Toph interrupted holding out her hand to silence them. "Someone's coming. Hey! It's-"

"Aang! I've found you fire bending teacher," Katara said before Toph could finish.

"Really? Who?" he asked excitedly.

At that moment, Iroh and Zuko emerged from the forest as if on cue and Aang's and Sokka's mouths fell open while Toph smirked and Katara blushed madly.

"Um, them."


	2. Yeah Right

**Thank you guys so much for the super awesome reviews! I was sooooooo happy when I read them I couldn't stop smiling (my sister thinks I'm the biggest dork but hey, she's crazy ya know?). Okay here it is, depending on what you guys think of it, I might or might not continue after this.**

**WAIT! I forgot the disclaimer!**

**ahem Disclaimer: As much as I wish I did, I do not own Avatar cuz the super geniuses that created it do and so on and so forth.  
**

* * *

**"KATARA **have you completely lost your mind!?" Sokka of course was the first to explode. "He already betrayed us once, who knows what he'll do the next time we run into Azula! Why I ought a-" he grabbed his boomerang and advanced towards Zuko only to trip over a piece of earth and fall flat on his face. "Plahh!! Toph!" He spat dirt out of his mouth and glared up at Toph. The little earthbender glanced around innocently.

"Sokka c'mon, if he hadn't changed he wouldn't have gotten Iroh away from Azula." Katara said defensively.

"That doesn't mean anything!" Sokka said as he stood up and dusted himself off. "One good deed doesn't automatically make you a good person! How's he gonna prove he's changed?" He shot Zuko a dirty look who scowled in return.

"He's not gonna be able to prove he's changed unless we give him a chance, Sokka!" she yelled back at him. "Aang help me out here," she turned to the little airbender who looked at her wide-eyed.

"I don't know Katara, I kinda agree with Sokka, I mean, he did betray us last time. Who's to say he won't do it again?" he said.

Katara stared at him then turned to Toph. "Toph? Say something!"

The earthbender shrugged and crossed her arms over her chest. "Hey, if Iroh trusts him then so do I."

"Thank you! Aang, Sokka, you guys trust Iroh right?" she said turning back towards them.

"Well yeah but that's different," Sokka said shifting his feet.

"It's not different Sokka, if Iroh wants to trust him then so should we!" she yelled her temper rising.

"Katara," Zuko said finally. Katara looked at him and he shook his head. "It's okay, I don't have to go."

"No!" she and Iroh said at the same time. "You and Iroh shouldn't have to split up because of us!" she turned back to Aang. "C'mon Aang, you said yourself you need a firebending teacher. Even if he hasn't changed, he'd have to take on all of us before he could hurt you. Do you really think he stands a chance? No offense Zuko," she said quickly.

"None taken."

"That's why we were gonna find Jeong-jeong," Sokka started.

"We don't even know where he is, or if he's still alive! And we have the Dragon of the West right here, one of the most powerful firebenders in the world," she yelled.

There was a moment of heavy silence where Zuko shifted his feet uncomfortably and Katara inhaled deeply, trying to calm her nerves. Iroh glanced from one face to another.

"Well, I guess if Iroh and Toph trust him," Aang gave Zuko a forced smile, "Welcome to the gang."

Zuko sucked on the inside of his cheek then forced a smile in return. "Thanks," he muttered.

Sokka glared at him as if looks could cause physical harm, but didn't object.

"Well, it's good that we have that settled then! Hey, does anyone have any tea on them?" said Iroh grinning. The kids looked at him in confusion.

Zuko nudged him, "Uncle that wasn't exactly polite," he murmured out of the corner of his mouth.

"Hold on," Toph stiffened again and a look of concentration crossed her face, "We've got company."

Zuko suddenly lunged forward and knocked Sokka to the ground. Angry red darts flew by where the water tribe warrior's head had been just seconds before.

"Shit."

* * *

**Haha! I left you guys a cliff hanger! Is it Azula? Is it some other soldiers? Gasp Is it evil flying-fire-nation-hogmonkeys seaking revenge on all human beings because they're poor little babies ate some bad sea prunes and turned into frogs?? Leave me some reviews and I promise the next chapter will be up ASAP. And I'll make it as original as stinkin possible. So REVIEW! Don't make me beg cuz ya know I will.**


	3. You Again!

**Thank you guys so much for the awesome reviews! Looking back on the last chapter I seriously kicked myself in the face (Don't ask how I did, the point is that I did), It was so not that great! But thanks for the reviews anyway! I love you guys. Sorry if this one is a little screwed up but like I said, I haven't had a chance to watch Avatar since like forever so I'm not totally sure what's going on.**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Avatar, there would be a music bender somewhere in there (Gasp!) I just had an epiphany!**

**Ready, Set, READ!!**

* * *

**"WELL**, well. Look what we've got here. I should have known that since you guys love the fire nation so much you'd end up joining them," a vaguely familiar voice came in the direction the darts had flown.

"Jet." Katara murmured between clenched teeth. There was a rustling of leaves and the 'freedom fighter' dropped from a tree and came into view. A smirk crossed his face, upsetting his handsome features.

"Hey Katara, you miss me?" he said giving her a wink. Her eyes narrowed and she spat at his feet.

"Get out of here Jet! There's no way you could win, it's one against six and Katara was able to freeze you do a tree by herself," said Sokka standing up.

Jet turned to face him and his smirk widened. "Who said I was alone?" Just then, ten or so fire nation soldiers came out of the trees around them.

"General Iroh, Prince Zuko, you are under arrest for betrayal of the royal family and will be taken back to Ba Sing Se to receive you sentence from Princess Azula," said one of the soldiers who was dressed differently from the rest.

"Us traitors? Is there something wrong with your brain? In case you haven't noticed, you're helping FIRE NATION!!" Sokka yelled. "Don't touch me you cretin!" He slapped away the hand of one of the soldiers trying to move him away from Zuko.

"Actually, these guys are not fire nation. You see, Azula said that if they don't bring that scar-face and the old fat guy to her by the end of the month, she's gonna kill one member of each of their families until they do. By the looks of it, they have only one more week to get these guys to her, or they can kiss their families good bye." Jet replied. The stupid grin still had not left his face.

"You can't take them! Aang needs to learn fire-bending! I said don't touch me you stupid cretin!" Sokka slapped the guard's hand away again.

Zuko and Iroh were already apprehended by four grim faced soldiers. Katara's hand moved to her pouch. "No Katara." Zuko said. "Their families lives are at stake." he faced Jet and gave him a smug look. "Let my uncle stay," he ordered.

"I'm afraid I can't do that. You see, she wants _both_ of you." said Jet motioning to each of them as if he was talking to a child. Zuko's guards suddenly jumped back and howled in pain. His cuffs were red hot.

"I'm sure my sister would understand." he said in a low menacing voice.

Jet grinned. "I thought you might say that. She said if that were the case, she wants the Katara instead." he faced Katara who stared him down with the coldest expression of hate. He made a kiss face at her and she turned away to look at Aang.

"Aang-," she started.

"No! They can't take Katara! Take me instead; what would she want with her anyways? I SAID DON'T TOUCH ME YOU IGNORANT CRETIN!" Sokka swung around and knocked the helmet off of the soldier only to gasp in astonishment at none other than-

* * *

**MWAHAHAHAHA!! (cough, gag, hack yuck!) I just got home from school when I decided to see if anyone responded and there were such lovely reviews I had to post another chapter. Okay, I gotta admit that I was totally winging this thing until I started writing this chapter and I promise I'll try to make the next one longer! Review please and I will be so happy that you'll get to see what happens next ASAP! So, who was under the helmet? Hmmm?? **


	4. What Happened

**Seriously dude, 20 reviews already! I was barely expecting there to be like, 10! Awwww!! You guys are too sweet! Okay, next chapter right here...**

**Disclaimer: I am a worthless loser who can't even afford to wish she owned Avatar.**

**Do you think the line will show up this time?? If it doesn't you guys will have to wait until my birthday before you get to see the next chapter! After this one I mean. Continue with the line! (I see it... do you?)**

* * *

**"NO!** They can't take Katara! Take me instead; what would she want with her anyways? I SAID DON'T TOUCH ME YOU IGNORANT CRETIN!" Sokka swung around and knocked the helmet off of the soldier only to gasp in astonishment at none other than-

"Hey Sokka! I missed you! What've you been up to lately?" then there was darkness.

Ugh. Pain. Sore pain. Throbbing pain. Aching pain. Piercing pain. Painful pain. Sokka tried to sit up, but then realized his hands and feet were bound and his mouth was gagged with a dirty rag. He blinked a few times to adjust to the dark and noticed two other bound and gagged, figures near him.

One of the figures moved. "Sokka? Are you okay?"

Katara rolled over on her side and saw Sokka waking up. There was still no light and but she heard him cough and make disgusted noises as he spat out his gag.

"I'm a little sore, but, what the heck happened?" He rasped breathing heavily. "The last thing I remember is hitting the helmet off that soldier and- Ty Lee."

"Yeah. She got your pressure point while you were standing there gaping at her."

"Hey! Can ya blame a guy for being a little surprised?"

"You just stood there."

"What was I supposed to do?"

Just then, the third figure coughed and they heard it spit the gag out.

"Damn, I feel like platypusbear crap," came the unmistakable voice of Zuko.

* * *

**"WHAT **happened?" he tried to rub the throbbing pain in the back of his head but his hands were tied behind his back. "What the- Azula."

The memory returned to him bit by bit.

_With a lightning fast jab, Sokka was out cold. _

"_Good job clown face. Way to not blow our cover." Another soldier removed her helmet and stood next to Ty Lee._

"_Now, I was there when Azula gave you her orders. I don't remember the part about taking the water girl instead of the fat guy," said Mai in her monotonous tone._

"_Yeah! She said specifically that she wanted Iroh and Zuko and no one else cuz she knew we couldn't capture them. Although we could take Sokka-," she started towards the motionless form of the water warrior but Mai grabbed the back of her gi and pulled her back._

"_Focus, we've got a breaker of deals here." She glared holes into Jet's face and he shifted his feet uncomfortably Ty Lee crossed her arms and pouted._

"_No one is going any where with you guys!" The ground shook beneath them and everyone fell down except for the madly grinning earth bending girl. "Oh yeah! that never gets old! C'mon you guys! We've got some major butts to kick here!" And the fight began._

_None of the soldiers could firebend and none of them seemed to be fighting as hard as they should have. In a blur of water, earth, fire, and air, they were all knocked unconscious and only Mai and Ty Lee were left._

"_Azula wasn't kidding when she said she would kill their families," said Ty Lee nervously as she and Mai stood back to back with Aang, Katara, Toph, and Zuko standing at ready. Suddenly, Mai smiled and a stick snapped in two._

_The four kids turned only to find they were surrounded by real fire nation troops lead by- "Well done, girls, we'll take it from here," that voice! Always so smug and icky! "Brother, you didn't really think I was stupid enough to send ten pathetic earth kingdom scum to capture you led by this traitor," she pointed with her chin to Jet who was held between two firenation soldiers. " I thought it was very funny when _all_ of them left thinking that was the concept. No, they were just a way to keep you here long enough for me to capture you. I suggest you and your new friends surrender. There's no way out." That smirk! _

_Zuko glanced around then suddenly grabbed Mai and held her before him with her hands behind her back. He pulled one of her daggers out of her sleeves and pressed it to her exposed neck._

_This only widened Azula's smirk. "You're weak Zu-zu. You know you can't do it. No wonder father is so ashamed of you." Mai hissed in pain as Zuko pressed the edge of the dagger closer to her neck. "C'mon Zuko. Do it. Prove you're worthy of father's love." He didn't move, Mai's breath became quick as blood trickled down her throat._

"_Dammit Zuko just do it!" she hissed to him. Zuko's eyes searched the faces until he found Iroh. His uncle stood facing Azula but he turned his head to look at Zuko. He wore a look that told him he was the only one that could decide what to do. _

_He sucked in a breath. "No." he whispered. In one swift movement, he pushed Mai away from him and threw the dagger at Azula. It flew so close to her it cut her cheek but landed in the shoulder of the soldier behind her. The man cried out in pain and grabbed his wound. _

_Azula's smirk was replaced by a shocked, then angry expression as she wiped the blood that oozed out of her flash. "Ty Lee!" and that was the last thing he knew before he blacked out._

* * *

**Okay you guys, I feel extremely unintelligent at the moment. I left out one of the most important characters! MOMO! What's an Avatar fic without Momo? I'll tell you what it is! It's a failure! That's right! I said it! I'm a failure! And my stupid non-Momo fic is a failure too! (bangs her head on the wall until she falls away from an apparently painful headache). **

**Of course, a few reviews saying very nice stuff could cheer me up and make me wanna continue to write (hint hint). Then I can turn this hero into a zero! Or zero into a hero. But it's not exactly a hero cuz it's a fic (rambles on for the next ten minutes about armadillos). Review or I'll get on my knees and beg! PLEASE REVIEW AND I'LL LOVE YOU FOREVER! Maybe not forever but you can pretend it's forever. But I'll still love you! **


	5. Why?

**Okay guys, I didn't see the line on the page thingie! You're lucky I wanted to post the thingie a gugger like, today because I love you so much. See, reviews have a purpose! Okay, next chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar and blah, blah, blah.**

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**"WHAT **happened after that?" Zuko asked Katara, seeing as she was the last one to black out.

"Aang called Appa, then Iroh, him, Toph, and Momo were able to escape, but Ty Lee got me first, and I guess there were just so many people, they couldn't help us without getting caught themselves." she answered. Her voice was incredibly soft and she spoke as if it hurt her.

"Katara? Are you okay?" asked Sokka worriedly.

"I got hurt a little but I'm fine," she answered. Before Sokka could begin his interrogation on how she got hurt and who hurt her, they all felt a vicious jolt and then rolled to one side of the room they realized they were in.

"Where are we?" Zuko asked.

"Azula's ship is my guess." came Katara's muffled voice, "Zuko could you do me a favor?"

"I can't exactly do anything at the moment," he hissed between gritted teeth.

"Oh yes you can," she said.

"What?"

"Remove your body from on top of me please."

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING ON TOP OF MY SISTER?!"

"Sokka chill out the boat moved." said Katara. Then she began coughing as Zuko moved away from her.

"Katara? She needs water! Is there a guard out there? Hey! Hey! My sister needs water! HEY!" Sokka yelled despite the pain he felt in his own throat.

The door opened and light flooded through. "Somebody call me?" came the overly perky voice of Ty Lee as she cart-wheeled into the cell. "Hey Sokka! How are you feeling?" she said landing in front of him with a giant grin on her face.

"Katara needs water!" he said blinking his eyes in the sudden light.

"Oh," she turned around and saw Katara lying on her side coughing. She got up and examined the waterbender then jabbed a pressure point.

Katara gasped and coughed more violently. "Sorry princess, but you can't have water unless you can't bend it. Guard! Get a bowl of water over here now!" She bent down and untied Katara's bounds on her hands and then her ankles.

When the guard returned she had jabbed Zuko's pressure point (he already couldn't bend but she did it again to make sure), and the rest of them were untied. The guard placed the water before her and Sokka rushed over to help her.

"Zuko, help her up," he said. Zuko raised his eyebrows in surprise but helped her anyway.

"You guys seriously I'm fi-" and she started coughing again then fell over in Zuko's arms and he patted her back awkwardly.

He put his palm to her forehead. "She's burning up Sokka." Sokka ripped a strip of cloth from his shirt and soaked in the water before placing it on her forehead.

"Lay her down," he instructed. Zuko cradled her in his arms and felt something damp on her stomach. Ty Lee opened the door wider so that light flooded onto Katara. Blood soaked her mid section and when they moved her gi, there was a long gash caked with dried blood. The color drained from Sokka's face when he saw the wound and he fell back feeling faint.

"How did this happen?" His voice was low as he turned to face Ty Lee. "How did this happen?!" He repeated standing up and approaching her.

"I had nothing to do with it you know I don't carry knives it was all Mai but it was a total accident Mai wouldn't hurt her well maybe she would but not on purpose hey you better not touch me cuz I've got guards!," she threatened backing between two guards.

"Sokka this isn't the time," Zuko said. "Katara needs a doctor now." he looked at Ty Lee expectantly.

"What am I an errand girl?" she demanded, but ordered the guard to fetch the doctor all the same.

Katara had passed out in Zuko's arms.

"Is there any other pressure point you can push to give her her bending back?" Sokka asked desperately.

"Why would I do that? I'm the bad guy remember!" she said.

"She could heal herself then." he explained. He took the cloth and dipped it in the water again.

"Nope. No reverse point, she's gonna have to wait a few hours for it to wear off." The guard returned with the doctor, an old woman dressed in fire nation colors.

"Who is the sick one here?" she croaked. Then she saw the group with Katara resting in Zuko's lap. "Oh my." she put down her kit then knelt down and examined Katara's wound. "It's not that deep but it should have been tended to a long time ago. Now look, she has a fever." She got to work cleaning her wound and then wrapped it. "She cannot stay down here or her fever will only get worse." she said when she was done. "She will have to go to the sick ward." They all looked at Ty Lee.

"What am I supposed to do? I don't give orders here! Take her to ward, but if Azula gets mad, it's not my fault." she said.

The doctor ordered the guards to bring a stretcher. When they returned, Sokka got up to follow them out. "Just her Handsome," said Ty Lee putting a hand on his chest to stop him. He glared down at her as they took Katara out of the cell.

"If anything happens to her, there will be nothing stopping me from killing everyone on this ship." he turned and sat down on the other side of the cell. Ty Lee stood for a second longer then left motioning for the guards to follow her.

When they were gone, the boys were once again engulfed in darkness.

"She'll be okay," said Zuko after a while.

"What do you know?" Sokka snapped irritably.

"She's strong; you have to be strong too," he said. A silence settled over them again.

"Thanks," said Sokka suddenly. Zuko looked towards him. "For saving me back there and for helping me with her. That was real great of you."

Zuko shrugged as if he could see him. "Sure."

"And," he swallowed, "I'm sorry for not trusting you at first. I was - wrong."

Zuko shook his head. "No, you weren't. I didn't expect you to trust me after what I did. You shouldn't have." he said.

"Why did you do it anyway? We seriously thought you changed." Sokka asked.

Zuko sighed. "You don't know what it's like. You have a family and friends that love you. Look at me; I have a psychotic sister and a father who's trying to take over the world. Can you blame me for being a little messed up?" he ended sarcastically.

"A little?" Sokka snorted. "What about your uncle?"

"Besides my mom, he's the only one that's ever loved me. When I helped Azula back there, I don't know what I was thinking. But I'll never do something like that again." he finished so sincerely Sokka couldn't doubt him.

"What happened to your mother?" he asked after a while. Zuko was silent and at first Sokka didn't think he was going to speak.

"I don't know," he whispered so that Sokka could just barely hear him.

"I'm sorry. Katara and I lost our mother too." he shuddered as he remembered the look on Katara's young face when she told him what had happened to her mother.

"I know, she told me in the catacombs and the subject kinda came up again on the beach," Zuko said.

"I've been meaning to talk to you two about that," Sokka said coming to sit next to him. "How did you two bump into each other?"

Zuko stretched his legs out and leaned his head back against the cell wall. "Coincidence I guess. I was out for a walk and I saw her, um, bending." he laughed. "She almost killed me when she saw me."

"What happened? How'd you get her to trust you?" Sokka inquired.

Zuko shrugged. "Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"Nothing. She was expecting me to fight her I guess but I told her I didn't want to."

"What'd she do after that?"

"She stuck the dagger further into my neck and basically said I was a stupid idiot that didn't deserve to live."

"Then what?"

Zuko shrugged again. Sokka wouldn't be too happy knowing that he grabbed his sister like that. Or to know that his sister and he were lip-locking.

"We, um, talked," he said awkwardly.

"About what?"

"What happened in the catacombs and, I told her," he hesitated.

"What? What'd you tell her?"

"How I got my scar."

"Oh. How did you get it?"

Zuko gritted his teeth and looked down at his hands. "My father gave it to me. We had a duel. I refused to fight. He took it as weakness, so he-" He stopped and took a breath.

"What kind of father-?"

"The firelord kind of father." Then he was silent and Sokka took it as he didn't want to talk anymore.

"Thanks." he said. Sokka turned around. "I've never been able to talk to anyone really. About all this."

"Yeah, thanks for telling me."

* * *

**Okay people there it is! How did you like it? Review please! I'm aiming for thirty before I post the next chapter. So please, please, please review! And I will love you forever! Well, you know.**


	6. I Wanna see my Sister!

**Sorry this took so long! I was totally swamped with a bunch of Chemistry, Geometry, and History homework. Those are my most important classes so I couldn't brush off all the work. Anyway, here it is and thank you to _FireCraker13 _for my 30****th**** review! I love all of you!! **

**Disclaimer: I own my lip gloss collection and my imaginary lemur named Momo. I do not own Avatar.**

**Okay read now! And review! Please, please, please, please, please, please, pppppppppppppllllllllllleeeeeeeaaaaaaaaassssssseeeeeeeee!!**

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_**"KATARA!** Katara c'mon!"_

"_We can't leave Sokka and Zuko!"_

"_We have to! Katara! There's too many of them!"_

"_We can't leave them!"_

"_KATARA BEHIND YOU!!" The next thing she knew, her abdomen was bloody, and she felt a horrible throbbing pain in her neck._

"_KATARA!" She fell to her knees._

"_KATARA!" Her vision grew foggy. _

"_KATARA!" She was so tired._

"_KATARA!" Darkness stole her._

"_Katara!" Her hearing faded._

"_Katara..." She was sooo tired._

* * *

**SHE **was warm. Her covers were warm. Her pillow was warm. The light cast upon her through the open window was oh so warm. Everything was so... warm. Where was she? She didn't care. She was so warm.

"She is finally awake!" the voice of an old woman reached her ears. Gentle hands shook her shoulders gently.

"Open your eyes sweetheart, there is nothing to fear." Her eyelids fluttered open. First, her vision was blurry. Then she saw a kindly old woman dressed in fire nation colors smiling down at her. "I was worried for a while." Her gentle hands stroked Katara's hair fondly.

"Such a strong girl." She tried to move, to turn her head to see where she was. But she was so warm, so comfortable. She sighed, and closed her eyes again.

"Good. Go back to sleep. You will be healed when you wake again." The gentle hand continued to stroke her hair.

"Go to sleep." She was so warm.

"Go to sleep." She was so...

* * *

**SHE **opened her eyes again. It was dark and she could see nothing at first. From a far corner in the room, she could hear the sounds of gentle snoring. The light from the waning moon filled the room and she could make out the form of a frail old woman, her body slowly rising up and down in the rhythm of her breathing. Katara lifted her head and looked around the room. She saw various containers with healer signs on it and everything was so plain and clean.

Her hair fell loosely down over her shoulders and to her hips and she glanced back towards the old woman. She still slept soundly; her chest still rose and fell gently in a steady rhythm. Katara sat up slowly wincing slightly, from soreness in her midsection. She stood up carefully and realized she was wearing only her under garments and a long night gown with sleeves way too long for her. She felt her stomach and lifted up her night gown to see a long, white scar run from below her left breast, across her stomach and down to her right hip.

She winced inwardly. How had she been able to heal it so quickly? She dropped her night gown again, and then turned towards the door. "Don't even think about it." Katara jumped at the voice and saw the old woman looking at her.

"Oh, I was-I was just, um," she stuttered. The woman smiled.

"Get back into bed girl. You will see your friends in the morning. They will be glad to see you again, seeing as you worried your poor brother half to death."

"Sokka? I have to-,"

"In the morning child," the woman interrupted soothingly. "Go back to sleep. And don't try to sneak out again; I'm a very light sleeper." She smiled and got up as Katara climbed back under the covers. "Drink this, it will take your dreams away." She handed Katara a cup of sweet smelling nectar. She took it from her and tasted it. She raised her eyebrows in surprise at the woman who looked at her with her kindly smile.

"Midnight Cherry nectar?" she asked. The woman nodded and Katara drained the cup. The nectar filled her with a sudden tranquility that she never knew she could achieve. She felt herself relax from her finger tips to her toes to the ends of each strand of her hair. Her eyelids grew heavy and she felt the woman pull the covers over her shoulders, and pat her hair.

"What is your name?" she asked drowsily.

"Kim Lian. Call me Lian. Now go to sleep." a comforting darkness surrounded her and brought her to a safe sanctuary, where she rested peacefully until morning.

* * *

**"THIS **is ENDLESS!" Sokka paced the small room for the millionth time since Katara was taken to the sick ward. "Can they at least tell us what the hell is going on out there!"

Zuko sighed and ran his fingers through his shoulder-length black hair. "Something's happened to her! Yeah, that's it! And they know I'm gonna kill everyone on the freaking ship if I find out! LEMME SEE MY SISTER!!" he shrieked through the bars of the cell.

The cell door opened as if on cue and a soldier came in. "Shut up!" he yelled and smacked the side of Sokka's head then left the cell.

"Hey! HEY!! If anything happened to her I swear I'll-,"

"Sokka!" Zuko yelled finally. "For five minutes! Listen to the stinkin' guard! Just FIVE MINUTES!"

Sokka ignored him and continued to yell. "Hey! I'm not finished with you! I WANNA SEE MY SISTER!!"

Zuko rolled his eyes. "Sokka! If you don't shut the hell up I swear I'll knock you out myself!"

Sokka continued to ignore him. "LEMME SEE MY SISTER I WANNA SEE MY SISTER! LET! ME! SEE! HER! RIGHT NOW!" Finally Zuko got up and grabbed Sokka's shoulder.

"This isn't helping you!" he said.

Sokka shrugged his hand away and continued to yell. Zuko grabbed his shoulder again, swung him around then struck him in the face. "SHUT UP!" He yelled shaking him.

Sokka struck him back reflexively and the next thing either of them knew was they were rolling around yelling at each other and grappling about on the floor.

"Guys!" Zuko was sitting on top of Sokka and had his fist drawn back to strike him while Sokka was pulling his hair when they both looked up to see Katara standing in the door way of the cell.

"Katara!" Sokka pushed Zuko off of him and ran to embrace his sister. "I was so worried! Don't you ever do that to me again! Do you hear me?"

"Sokka I can't breathe, you're squishing my lungs!" Katara said pushing him away gently. He kissed her forehead then stood back to look at her. A frown crossed his face.

He took in her loose hair, long night gown, and bare feet. She looked so small, so vulnerable, so incredibly innocent and defenseless, he hugged her again tightly. "You're too skinny." he said after a while. She looked up at him with a small smile.

"I'm fine Sokka. Sorry I made you so worried; we heard you from three halls away." she buried her face in his shoulder feeling safer within her brother's embrace.

"We?" he asked.

She turned around and called out to someone. The old woman doctor entered the room. "This is Lian," Katara said leading the woman in.

"Nice to see Katara has such a caring brother, and-," she cocked her to the side when she noticed Zuko. He flipped his hair away from his face revealing his scar and she immediately dropped to her knees and touched her forehead to the floor. "Your Highness." she whispered.

Zuko frowned in surprise, and then wiped away a trickle of blood that ran down the corner of his mouth. He knelt before the old woman and raised her chin so that she faced him. An expression of recognition crossed his face. "Li-li?" He asked. A tear fell out of the corner of her eye as she nodded. He pulled her up and embraced her.

"Never bow to me again." he whispered fiercely.

* * *

**HE **couldn't believe it! His old nurse from so long ago was serving now as a doctor on Azula's ship. "What are you doing here?"

"After your banishment, I needed a new job." she said with a shrug. "Oh, you've grown so much!" She exclaimed standing back to look at him. "And helping the Avatar!" she smiled and touched his cheek fondly, "Your mother would be so proud of you."

Zuko felt something well up inside of him at the mention of his mother. He forced a smile, "Yeah, I guess she would."

She patted his cheek, "I know it." They stood for a moment longer, each silently remembering Ursa. "Katara and I must go now." she said after a while.

Sokka held her in a protective embrace as if daring anyone to take his baby sister away from him again. Lian touched his arm, "She is quite safe I promise you, and the sick ward is much more comfortable than this cell."

Katara looked up at him. "I'm alright Sokka. Lian's been taking good care of me, I promise." He hugged her again then let her go. As they were leaving, Katara suddenly turned around and went to Zuko. She stood on her tip toes and kissed the corner of his mouth. "You're right," she said, "I am lucky."

She and Lian then left and the two boys were alone in the cell again. They stood for a moment in an awkward silence before Zuko spoke. "About the whole, hitting you in the face thing-,"

"Don't apologize, I don't need it," Sokka interrupted sitting on the edge of the cot.

"I was actually gonna say you totally deserved it for being a loud son of -," Sokka hit him on the back of the head with the pillow from the cot and the two ended up laughing.

"Hey, I'm glad she's okay," Zuko said after a while.

"Yeah, thanks," Sokka replied gratefully.

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**There it is people! Review please and when I hit 40 I'll try and have the next chapter up in no time flat!**  **I'll try to make the next one about Toph, Aang, Iroh, Appa and most importantly of all little Momo! Thank you **_**Tsukiko ice goddess673**_** for giving him to me! ******


	7. You did What!

**Okay guys, here it is! Sorry it took so long; who besides me was totally hooked by RedPaint?? Read and review and the next chapter will be up ASAP! :)**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

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**THE **night was still and cold, no clouds were in the sky, no wind stirred the trees, the waning moon weakly bent the waves, back and forth. Further into the island, in the forest, in a clearing, lay the magnificent form of a slumbering bison; a little ball of fur purred contently on his head, a block of earth that harbored the slumbering earthbender. In the middle of the camp was a smoldering fire, just barely holding on to the fragments of life. On the far side of the camp, lay the silently snoring form of an old firebender. Leaning against the sleeping bison, was a troubled young airbender, too upset to sleep.

* * *

**TOO **many things ran through his troubled young mind, too many things than he should have to be burdened with. He wanted to rescue Sokka, Katara, and... maybe Zuko, but he knew that would take up even more of the precious time he needed to rally up troops, if they were going to seize control of the fire Nation on the day of the eclipse. His mind wandered back to the argument he had had with Toph and Iroh...

"_But we have to save them!" he yelled frustrated. Why couldn't they understand?_

"_Aang, I want to save them as much as you do but you know we don't have time! They can take care of themselves!" Toph yelled in his face shaking his shoulders._

"_She's right. Zuko is a very powerful bender, and so is Katara. And her brother is a strong warrior as well." Iroh put in. _

_Aang was about to speak when his mind grasped what Iroh just said and his memory brought him back to the village with the fortune teller; she said Katara would marry a powerful bender and she saw no love in Aang's future. Could that bender be...?_

"_We have to save them! Who knows what Azula's done to them by now!" he said desperately. _Or what Zuko might have done to Katara.

"_Aang, listen to me! They're smart and they're strong! I know they will come up with a way to escape!" Toph yelled equally frustrated._

"_How do you know?" He was near tears right now. "How do you know they aren't dead or hurt or worse?"_

_Toph's unseeing eyes bore into his. Her hand traveled from his shoulder down to his chest. "What does this tell you?" she asked. Aang stared at her then swallowed his tears. "What does your heart tell you Aang?" she repeated._

_Even though she couldn't see him, he took his eyes away from hers and took a breath. "That they're gonna be okay." he said. _I swear Zuko, if you touch Katara...

"_Good, now, let's finish what we were supposed to be doing before all this drama."_

* * *

**HE **crossed his arms over his chest and sighed, then looked up at the stars as if they held the solution to all of his problems. "Why me?" he asked out loud. "I'm not ready." A soft purr reached his ear and Momo settled himself onto Aang's shoulders. He chuckled softly and smiled. "Are you why it was me Momo?" He stroked the lemur's furry head and he purred; his eyes closed halfway in contentment. He climbed down from Aang's shoulders and curled up in his arms then fell asleep.

Aang turned his mind back to Katara. He wished she were here. She would know what to say to make him feel better. She always knew. But Toph was right, time was running out, and as hard as it was, he was still the Avatar, and that meant making sacrifices; even if they were his friends. He sighed then leaned back into Appa and tried to fall asleep. His dreams stole him away to a long time ago, playing with his friends before he knew he was the Avatar, when he was just a regular kid, and there his dreams held him captive until morning, when he was forced to return to reality.

She hated this feeling, she didn't recognize it. Her heart beat faster in her chest whenever he was close to her; she wished she knew what it was. It wasn't that she liked him, well... maybe it was. It was all so confusing and overwhelming; she hated it. She wanted to be mad at him; for what? For a feeling? A feeling that she almost liked?

She rolled over onto her back and made an opening in her tent. Cool night air flooded through and embraced her comfortingly, softly kissing her cheeks. How she wished she could see the stars!

What if he didn't like Katara? What if he felt the same way about her that she felt about him? What feeling? She was afraid of naming it.

She sighed and tried to fall asleep.

* * *

**"SO**..." Sokka started.

"Hm?" Zuko opened an eye and looked over at him.

"Any ideas on how we're getting outa here?" he asked.

Zuko raised an eyebrow, he had almost forgotten about that. Seeing as they were prisoners on a bad guy's ship, part of the job description was coming up with a plan to escape.

"Nope." he closed his eye again and leaned back against the wall. All he wanted to do really was sleep.

"Maybe we should think of one...??" Sokka persisted.

Zuko opened his eye again. "You're bored aren't you?"

"Oh yeah!" he said slumping against the wall in defeat. Zuko snickered.

"Okay then, what can we do? We're locked in a cell, Ty Lee took away my bending, we have no weapons, and Katara's still not fully healed... is there a bright side to any of this?" he opened both of his eyes this time and looked at Sokka expectantly.

Sokka scratched his head and thought for about ten seconds. "I got nothin'! Hey let's talk about something else." He sat on the other side of the cell across from Zuko.

"Like what?" this guy just won't let him sleep will he?!

"I dunno... guy stuff." Sokka suggested.

Zuko sighed. "Mmhm?"

"Sparring, burping, food... girls?" he said hoping to spark a conversation.

"Girls? Am I supposed to believe you've had a girlfriend before?" he scoffed. "That's funny."

"Hey! Actually, girls like me! You're just saying that maybe cuz you've never had one!"

"Girls like you?" he laughed ignoring the last part of the sentence, "I've seen your little tribe, what, those little girls or the old ones?"

Sokka blushed. "In case you haven't noticed, I've traveled a lot of different places with Aang, and believe it or not, there are a lot of girls in this world!"

"Yeah, too bad none of them really liked you." Zuko said with a smirk.

"You don't know anything! And girls don't like you cuz you were always too busy chasing us!"

_Oh he wanted to go there now?_

"I'm a nice guy; girls know that, even if I'm a little-,"

"Eccentric?"

"Hey! Better eccentric than stuck up! I bet you couldn't land a water tribe girl if your life depended on it!"

"That's what you think." said Zuko as he remembered the kiss he had shared with Katara. Damn it was amazing!

"You say that like you already have." Sokka eyed him skeptically.

"Maybe I have." said Zuko, his smirk widened as he thought of the feel of her soft, wonderful lips against his.

"Who?" he asked.

Zuko pushed the memory aside. "Am I supposed to believe you know every water tribe girl in the world?" he asked.

"So you did? Do I know her?" _Who would kiss Zuko??_

Zuko licked his lips and didn't answer.

"If you're referring to Katara's little peck, you can barely call that a kiss." he said.

Zuko raised an eyebrow, "Of course not."

"Zuko, what _exactly_ happened between you and my sister when you met on the beach?"

"You don't think I kissed _her_?" He put fake incredibility into his voice.

"What's wrong with kissing my sister?" Sokka asked menacingly.

"Nothing! She's a great kisser-," _Shit._ He slapped his hand over his mouth. "I mean I'm sure she's a very good- Okay I kissed her are you happy now!?"

"NO! I'm not happy now! How the-! What the-! What were you-! YOU KISSED MY SISTER!!"

He launched himself at Zuko and they were once again grappling about on the floor; Sokka calling him every bad name a big brother could think of to call the boy who kissed his little sister, and Zuko trying very hard, (but failing miserably), to make him shut up and stop.

"You guys! Really, do you need separate cells or something?"

The boys stopped and there was Katara again, standing in the door way with her arms crossed and an amused look on her face.

* * *

_**WHY **is it that they are never getting along when I come to visit?_

"Katara!" This time Zuko kicked Sokka off of him then stood up and straightened his dirty clothes. Sokka ran to hug his sister then stood back and examined her.

She looked a lot better than the she had a few days ago, the color had returned to her cheeks, she was back in her old clothes, but she was still pretty skinny.

"How long will this visit be?" he asked hugging her again.

"Actually, this is not a visit." Lian entered the room behind Katara. "She is healthy enough to stay with you again."

Katara turned and hugged her. "Thank you so much for everything Li-li." she said.

"Oh I am not nearly finished helping you though!" the old woman exclaimed. Before any of the teenagers could ask her what she meant, she smiled to all of them and left the cell, locking the door behind her.

They stood for a moment longer in silence then Zuko broke it. "What do you think she meant by that?"

Katara shrugged. "Maybe she'll help us escape," she suggested.

"Maybe." he answered, their gaze held for one awkward moment before Sokka moved between them.

"Katara, you should get some rest," he took her hand and led her like she was a child towards the single cot in the room.

"Sokka I got enough rest in the healer's room," she complained pulling away.

"No excuses Katara! Go to sleep right now!" he forced Katara into the cot then drew the covers up to her shoulders. She opened her mouth to protest again but he silenced her with a look.

"Fine, to make you happy!" she turned over to face the wall so she didn't see the look Sokka threw Zuko across the room.

Stay away from her! He mouthed. Zuko shrugged then sat down and rubbed his bruised shoulder.

* * *

_**SCREAMS **filled the air around her, soot and blood stained the ground. "Mommy! Mommy!" She screamed frantically searching for her mother, before her cries were met by an unearthly scream. _

"_Mommy!" She ran towards the cry but it grew more distant. "Mommy!" she shrieked desperately her legs couldn't carry her fast enough and the horrible scream grew ever more distant. _

"_Momma!" tears streaked down her face and everything grew dark. The snow disappeared, the smoke filled sky grew terribly dark with the promise of a horrible storm, and she was all alone except for that scream now hopelessly far away._

"_Mommy!" she wailed, not knowing anymore what to do. Suddenly, there was a flash of hot orange flames, and she screamed._

"Katara!" her eyes flew open and met the gaze of two golden ones.

"Zuko!" she gasped. He was kneeling down beside the cot and watching her, his eyes full of concern. He touched her face and wiped away her tears gently.

"You were crying," he said. He cupped her chin is his hand, "Are you okay?"

She was shaking now, the dream had disappeared into a dark memory but she was still breathing hard. She started crying again and he cradled her head against his chest.

"Shhh... it's okay, it was just a dream." he said soothingly. She grabbed his wrist weakly.

"It was-," she started.

"It's okay, it's over now." he stroked her hair and she sighed. After a while he put her head back down onto the pillow.

She was exhausted. "Did I wake you?" she whispered.

"No. I couldn't sleep." He folded his hands on the cot before her and rested his chin on them and watched her.

"Thanks," she said, her eyes closed halfway, but she could still see his slight nod. She closed her eyes all the way but she didn't feel him move away from her. Her eyes opened again. He was smiling slightly. "I'm hardly that interesting; am I?"

He chuckled softly. "I'd rather stare at you than your brother." he said.

"Where is he?" she asked. Zuko gestured with his eyes behind him and Katara saw her brother slumped against the wall with his chin in his hand. He was snoring softly and murmuring something about Momo stealing his dinner.

"He was trying to watch me all night. I don't think he likes that you're here with us now." he said sarcastically. She laughed.

"Why wouldn't he like that?" she asked tracing his jaw line with her finger.

"I'm still trying to figure that one out," he grinned and leaned close enough that his lips barely grazed hers.

"What if he wakes up?" she whispered. She lowered her gaze to his lips.

"I'm willing to take that chance," and he closed the small distance between his lips and hers. Once again she was filled with that warm electrifying feeling, as she kissed him back.

"Momo gimme my meat back!" The two were startled by Sokka's yell and they broke apart. Sokka's hand fell from under his chin and he woke with a start.

He looked sleepily around the room and Zuko moved quickly away from Katara. Sokka got up and stretched then walked over to Katara's cot where she had pulled the covers up over her head, shut her eyes and feigned sleep. He glanced towards Zuko who was also faking sleep then he turned back to Katara and sat down next to the cot and folded his arms next her pillow, then lay his head down and in a matter of minutes, he was sleeping soundly again.

Katara edged away from him slowly, then sat up and looked at Zuko. He sat up as well and looked at Sokka, then Katara, then covered his mouth to hold back his laughter. She grinned and shrugged then they both lay back down to sleep.

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**There it is people! I hope you like it! If not... critique me** **and I'll try to fix it. But I can't fix it if you don't REVIEW!! :) **


	8. Who are You?

**Sorry this took so long! It was my birthday Friday and I just realized that I'm getting **_**very**_** old! I mean... 15! That's like, halfway to thirty! As in 15 years later I'll be thirty!! I'm depressed. I might feel better if you review? (nudge wink) **

**Disclaimer: I own my giant teddy bear Berry Bear, and the forty-five cupcakes and balloons my friend gave me (I think she's trying to make me gain a pound for every year I've been alive). I own a lot of other stuff too, but I do not own Avatar or else there would be a awesome music bender who Zuko fell head over heels in love with and later married. ;) **

**Enjoy! And give me some nice reviews for a belated b-day present and I won't be depressed any more and I'll be so happy I'll have the next chapter up ASAP!**

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**"HOW **long have we been here?" Katara asked.

Zuko and Sokka looked up and Sokka shrugged. "Maybe about a month," he said.

"Oh," she said. There was silence and the three teens all sat and stared towards the center of the cell. "Maybe we should come up with some sort of plan." She suggested after a while.

"Tried that. No bright side to anything," said Zuko not taking his eyes away from the center of the cell.

"Oh." Silence again. "Are you sure?" She asked, breaking the silence again.

"Yup." he said nodding, his eyes studied a very interesting stain in the ground.

"Absolutely?" she persisted.

"Positive." the deafening silence again.

"There's gotta be something!" she exclaimed standing up from where she was sitting on the cot. Zuko and Sokka both looked at her. "I mean, Lian said she wasn't done helping us, so, maybe she meant she was gonna help us escape." The boys stared at her then shrugged and turned there gaze back to the floor. "You guys!" she wined. "How are we gonna come up with a plan if you don't want to help me?"

"All right then Katara, what do you suggest we do?" Zuko snapped turning to look at her. "Huh? Neither of us can bend; Ty Lee makes sure of that, we're unarmed, the only window is tiny, there are about seventy firebenders on this ship which is most likely Azula's- We're powerless and we're on our way to the fire nation. To die. Is there any bright side any where? Cuz I'd like to know!"

When she didn't say anything he leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes.

Katara huffed then sat back down on the cot and crossed her arms. "Has Azula or Mai come down here?" she asked Sokka after a few minutes.

"What?" Zuko asked turning to look at her again.

"Sokka, have they?" she asked ignoring him.

"Now that you mention it... no. They haven't. It's only been Ty Lee to jab his pressure point." He used his chin to motion towards Zuko.

"Then we don't know for sure that this is Azula's ship, or that she's even on board! Don't you think she might come down here to make fun of Zuko or something if she were?" Katara asked. Zuko scowled and she continued to ignore him.

"I guess." Sokka said.

"And what difference does it make that Mai's here?" Zuko asked trying to put himself back into the conversation.

"Zuko!" Katara snapped facing him. "I'm trying to find a bright side here!" she rested her chin in her hands and thought while Zuko's scowl deepened and Sokka watched him amusedly.

Just then, they heard a click and the door opened. Lian stuck her head in and smiled. "May I come in?" she asked.

Katara stood up and smiled. "May we come out?" she asked. Lian laughed and entered.

"Here. I made this last night," she handed Katara a silver flask and lowered her voice. "It will give you your bending back, but only for two hour until the pressure point push takes effect again. After that, you will have to wait until the effect wears off," she leaned closer to her, "Use it wisely."

Katara took the flask. It was about as wide as an apple and about five inches long and made of glass. A silver dragon wrapped itself around the flask, its eyes were glittering rubies and its mouth was open. The liquid it contained was as red as an angry fire storm.

"How are you feeling Katara?" Lian asked after a while.

"Huh?" Katara looked away from the dragon.

"Your wound, is it causing anymore trouble?" she asked.

"Oh! No, not really." she said shaking her head.

"Let me see it." said Lian an Katara lay down on the cot and Lian moved her robes away from her mid section. The long white scar was revealed again making Sokka gasp and Zuko frown.

"How did you heal that so quickly? She was only with you for a few days!" Sokka exclaimed staring at the scar. "Unless..." he looked at Lian and she smiled and looked at Zuko.

"Zuko?" she asked. He looked at Katara's scar.

"She's a water bender. She healed me after my duel." he turned his cheek so they could see the left side of his face.

"How?" asked Katara. "I mean, you're fire nation."

Lian smiled again. "My mother came from the Northern Water tribe. She met my father, who was a fire nation soldier, when her father, who was chief of the water tribe, came to a meeting at the fire nation, for all leaders of the world. This was back when the war was young. They fell in love and married. For a while, we lived at the North Pole, but then my mother grew ill." she lifted her hand and showed them a silver ring with a blue sapphire embedded in it. "She gave me this, the day before she died. I was ten years old."

She sighed as she remembered her mother weakly taking off the ring, and handing it to her. _As long as you wear this, no harm will come to you. It was given to me by the moon spirit herself. Take it._ After so many years had gone by, a single tear always found a way to squeeze from her eyes.

"After she died, my father took me back to the fire nation. I looked just like one of them; my hair was dark, my eyes were gold, and my skin was pale. No one ever suspected my mother was from the water tribes. My father told me to keep my bending a secret. He didn't want them to take me away." She closed her eyes and breathed.

"He was killed in battle, when I was sixteen." She remembered when they had brought her her father's sword and his last letter.

_My dearest Kimmy,_

_I have been chosen to go on a very dangerous mission to Ba Sing Se. Chances are, this may be the last letter I write you. If I do not come back, I leave everything to you. Not that it is much, but take care of things. _

_Kimmy, I do not want you do be sad that I am gone. Be happy that I lived. The world is changing. Azulon is determined to bring the world to its knees before the Fire Nation. Promise me that if the Avatar ever returns, if you get the chance, help him restore peace, and balance between the elements. Even if it is something small, do it. I will watch over you always._

_Never take off your mother's ring. It is special, you know that right? Find happiness, in a world full of darkness, we all need some sort of light to make it through. For so long, you were my light, Kimmy. Now, my time is nearing towards an end. If I do, by some miracle, make it back alive, I will send word to you, and we will return to the North Pole. If I die, know that I am happy now, to be back with your mother. We will be your guides until the day you come to join us._

_With love,_

_Your Father,_

_Jong Puk Ku_

"He never sent word." she whispered. Katara patted her arm comfortingly, uncertain of what she was supposed to say. "One day, about twenty years after I received that letter from my father, I was water bending in his old tea shop. It was a foolish thing to do. Some soldiers saw me and I was going to be executed. But there was a prince who had my life spared." she looked at Zuko.

"Uncle." he said.

She nodded. "Yes. Instead, I was a servant in the palace. For twenty more years I was a servant in that palace. Then, they discovered I could use my bending to heal. So I became a nurse. There have been times when I wanted to give up, and just lie in bed and never wake, but then, you were born and you became the light my father wanted me to find." She looked at Zuko again.

"You were such a handsome baby, and I had the honor of taking care of you." she reached out and touched his cheek. "I watched you play, laugh, cry, get angry, and get hurt," she laughed. "I watched you grow. And you just keep growing don't you?" Zuko smiled.

"After your banishment, it felt like my life was over. I became a nurse on this ship, waiting for death to finally take me to my parents. Then, a girl was brought to me. She reminded me so much of a friend of mine, from the North Pole." She turned from Zuko to Katara and reached out and touched Katara's necklace. "Yes, I think I remember who she was."

"My Gran-Gran!" Katara exclaimed.

"Yes. She, Uganda, and I were the best of friends," she sighed. "I would give anything, to see them again." She raised her wrist and there was a green string with black beads and jade stones. The jade was carved into eleven different animals. "These were our bracelets. Uganda has one, Kala has one, and I have one. We made them, a few days before my father and I returned to the Fire Nation."

Katara remembered the bracelet on her Gran-Gran's wrist, and then just remembered the one on Uganda's. "Of course! I can't believe I didn't notice it before!" She exclaimed.

Lian laughed. "Yes, we were good friends. Actually, she stowed away on my father's ship after Paku gave her that necklace. She said she didn't want to get married so she was going to run away, clear to the other side of the world!" she laughed again. "She made me swear not to tell anyone." Her memory took her again.

"_Li'-Li please! I would rather be taken by the fire nation then marry that creep! You know him, he's so stuck up and thinks he's better than everybody else cuz he's such a great bender." she had been hiding in a barrel of apples when Lian had happened to be coming down to look for one. She had been overjoyed and surprised to see her friend, but the reason she was there scared her. _

"_Where will you go?" she asked, not sure of what to do._

_Kala bit her lip and thought. "The South Pole. They don't have stupid traditions like ours." _

"_How will you get there?" Lian asked._

"_Tell me the next time you guys make port. There's bound to be a ship on the way to the South Pole." she said. "Please don't tell anyone! Your father will send me back and I really don't want to marry Paku!" Lian thought about the boy her friend was betrothed to. She remembered how he strutted about, always ready to show off his bending skills. "Please Li-li! You're my best friend." Her big blue eyes pleaded along with her words. _

"By the looks of it, she made it there. And must have met someone." She smiled at Katara and Sokka, then back at Katara. "When I look at you, I can just see her begging me not to tell anyone. The last thing I remember about her is that she smelled so much like apples when she left my father's ship." She patted Katara's cheek. "You look so much like her, it's amazing."

Just then, a guard opened the door. "Are you done yet?" he asked irritably.

Lian looked back at him, "Just a few more minutes."

"Hurry up," and he closed the door again.

Lian laughed. "The young are so impatient! Alright then, I guess I should be going." She stood up and Katara moved her robes back over her stomach. "We make port in three days," she winked at them then turned and left the cell, locking the door behind her.

The silence that had been there before Lian had come returned. "Three days. Three days to plan our escape you guys," said Katara. "Zuko, with our bending back, do you think we could get out?" She stood up and walked to the far side of the cell, and stood on her tip toes trying to look out the window.

"Yeah, we can't waste this stuff though." He took the flask from Katara and turned it over in his hands.

""With your guys' bending back, we could get out, but what about me? I need my boomerang. And what about the guards? We've gotta think you guys," said Sokka.

Katara paced the room then stopped in the center of the cell and grinned. "I've got a plan."

"Tomorrow's the day you guys, we've gotta be ready," Sokka turned to Katara, "Are you sure this'll work?"

Katara grinned. "Positive."

"Good," Zuko said. "Go to sleep you guys, we can't be tired tomorrow."

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**REVIEW!! Next chapter next week you guys! Sixty reviews please! :) **


	9. The not so Great Escape

**I am so sorry! I am so late I know but I've been working on this other story for English! I'm sorry! (Bangs head against the wall until she has a concussion then is rushed to the hospital, barely escapes death, gets better then leaves the hospital with a free lollipop.) I'm such a bad person! (throws the lollipop against the wall and starts crying.) Of course this is more important than a stupid grade that will go on my permanent record and determine what I will do for the rest of my life! **

**I'm sorry! Sorry! Will you still read my story? (puppy pout) Puh- lease? :)**

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**TWO **teens lay sleeping in the cell when Ty Lee came in with two guards to jab Zuko and Katara's pressure points before they could bend again.

"Rise and shine! It's time to jab your points! Hey, where's Sokka?" She turned and saw the two soldiers behind her collapse. Sokka stood behind them in a camai stance with his fists tightly clenched.

"Hello Ty Lee," he said grinning. She opened her mouth to scream but Katara came behind her and knocked her out.

"Alright you guys, into their outfits." Zuko and Sokka changed quickly but Katara didn't move.

"Uh, Katara, c'mon, let's go!" said Sokka. She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow.

"I am not gonna take mine, or Ty Lee's clothes off with you guys in here. Go stand guard. Now!" she snapped when they didn't move.

The two boys left the cell and closed it, then stood as if they had been guarding the door the whole time.

"Hey Zuko, I couldn't help but notice that you and my sister seem to be... looking at each other," said Sokka casually.

"No we haven't," said Zuko quickly. They really haven't, only at night when Sokka was sleeping. He _was_ sleeping... right?

"Do you really think I'm that stupid?" he asked making a face behind the mask he was wearing.

"You really want me to answer that?" Zuko said turning to face him.

"I hate you," said Sokka looking at the wall ahead of them.

"Why? Cuz I can kick your ass, or cuz I like Katara?" he immediately bit his tongue as if trying to eat his words.

"So you admit it! You do like her! I knew it!" he made as if to attack him but Zuko put a hand out to stop him.

"Seriously, what part of 'I can kick your ass,' don't you understand?"

Sokka straightened up and looked at the wall again. "I don't care really," he said.

"You don't?" Zuko asked surprised.

"No, but if you hurt her, I will kill you," he said as if discussing the weather.

Zuko looked at him not sure of whether he should be amused or scared. "Um, okay," he said looking at the wall.

The cell door opened finally and Katara stepped out in Ty Lee's clothes and hair style. "I feel like such a freak," she said tugging at the baggy pants and trying to cover her middle with the mid-drift.

Sokka smacked Zuko hard on the back, "Stop staring."

Katara rolled her eyes then took the flask with the bending restoring liquid from her pocket and uncorked it. "Ty Lee took away our bending a few hours ago. When this wears off, we'll have about one more hour before our bending comes back."

She looked at her brother and Sokka, "You guys ready?" They nodded. She put her lips on the opening and drank half of the liquid then handed it to Zuko. "Whoa I feel good!" She exclaimed.

"Zuko!" Sokka shrieked. Zuko was about to take a drink from the flask when Sokka caught his wrist.

"What?" he asked irritably.

"Waterfall," Sokka said taking the flask from him.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" said Zuko incredulously.

"Waterfall!" Sokka shrieked.

"Sh! Sokka seriously, just let him drink it," Katara said with her hands on her hips.

Sokka made a face then reluctantly handed it to Zuko. Zuko put his lips on it and drained the rest of the liquid from the flask. "Wow! That's some good stuff!" He lit up a small flame in his hand then experimentally tossed it back and forth from one hand to the other.

"Hey!" they all turned quickly at the sound of the weak voice, and saw that it came from a cell nearby. "Can a guy get some water?"

Jet's face appeared at the bars. "Katara?"

"Jet what did they do to you?" she rushed over to the cell then turned to Zuko, "Open the cell!"

"Hold on! Katara remember what this guy did? He's nuts!" said Sokka standing between Zuko and the cell. Katara pushed him away.

"Look at what they did to him!" she exclaimed. Jet's face was cut and bruised and one eye was more swollen than the other. "Zuko! Open the cell!" she repeated.

"You might wanna move Jet." He heated his hand then punched straight through the door.

"Was that really necessary? We have the keys!" Sokka yelled slightly jealous and more annoyed.

"No, _you _had the keys," he kicked the door open and Jet fell into his arms. "Katara told me to open it, with or without the keys. And Jet, sorry man, but I'm just not like that."

"Sorry, I'm a little sick," he tried to straighten himself up but he fell over again and Katara caught him.

"I have to heal him!" she said. "Sokka help me!" Sokka came over and one of them was on either side of Jet holding him up.

"Katara, he's gonna slow us down." Sokka warned.

"I'd rather kill him myself than let the fire nation do it," she said, "Hurry up." They started running at a slower pace than they had wanted but they still moved quickly.

"Here's our stuff!" Zuko disappeared into a room and came back out with all their things. He slung his duo blades into their place on his back, gave Sokka his boomerang, Katara her water pouch, and Jet his swords.

"It's empty!" Katara said dismayed. She turned the skin upside down but not a drop fell out.

"We wouldn't have had time to heal him in the first place," said Zuko. "Come on, we have to keep moving before they get back. Just then, footsteps were heard above them.

"I think we're already too late!" Jet moaned.

"Hurry!" They ran faster than before and but they didn't avoid meeting up with a group of soldiers around a bend.

"Ty Lee! What are you doing with the prisoner?" One of the soldiers asked.

Katara blinked and Jet nudged her. "He's talking to you, you're wearing her clothes!" he hissed.

"Oh. Oh! Um, I'm taking him off the ship, he's wounded and dying so there's no point in keeping him," she said afraid that her voice wasn't high or perky enough.

"Princess Azula said she wanted all of them to stay on this ship," the soldier said suspiciously.

"Yeah, well, I don't think she wants this one on this ship," Katara said nervously.

"She wanted especially this one to stay on this ship. And why didn't you just order someone to remove him for you?" the soldier persisted.

"Are you questioning me on my own ship?! What I do or do not do is no business of yours soldier!" she yelled agitatedly.

The soldiers took a step back. "Yes! I mean s-sorry. I was out of term." He was about to turn around and order his troop to help them when he noticed her hand on her water skin. His eyes widened. "The prisoners have escaped! Raise the alarm!"

Zuko quickly retrieved his duo swords and dispatched the soldier.

"Katara! Hold Jet!" Sokka dropped Jet onto Katara then ran to help Zuko. Together, they knocked out all of the soldiers but one of them was able to escape.

"Great! Now the whole ship will know we escaped." Zuko said throwing up his hands.

"No use crying over it, we can still escape let's just keep moving!" Sokka said grabbed Jet again and they ran down the passageway.

"Uh-oh! More soldiers!" Zuko shoved Katara and Jet through the nearest door just as the soldiers rounded the corner.

"Hey! What are you two doing here? You're supposed to be looking for the prisoners!" Came a gruff and angry voice from behind the mask of the soldier in the lead.

"Hey we were looking for the prisoners!" Sokka yelled deepening his voice.

"Yes we were! And we looked in there!" Zuko pointed to the door behind him. "And they're not in there. So keep moving!"

The angry soldier pushed Zuko aside. "I'd like to see for myself if anyone's in there." he growled.

Zuko pushed him back. "You don't have to. I already did, there's no one in there," he said as if daring him to look in the room. The man took off his mask revealing a handsome face of a man who looked almost in his fourties.

"Take off your helmet soldier," the man commanded. Zuko didn't move. "I said take off your helmet soldier," he said in a low and dangerous voice.

Zuko slowly raised his hands as if to remove his helmet but then he drew his fist back to strike the man in the face. The man had been expecting it so he moved quickly to the side and punched Zuko in the stomach.

"The prisoners are in the room!" he yelled. Zuko and Sokka both moved in front of the door as more soldiers appeared.

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**"KATARA?"** Katara turned and recognized the room she had spent her first few days in on the ship.

"Li-li?" A light turned on somewhere and the room was lit. She heard a small chuckle.

"Aren't you supposed to be healed? I didn't think I would see you in here again." Someone fell against the door and Katara hurried to lock it.

"Well, we're in the middle of escaping and we've got an injured guy. You wanna help us?"

Lian smiled and moved to help Katara get Jet on the bed, meanwhile the commotion outside grew louder.

Katara looked at the door worriedly, "We have to hurry; they won't be able to hold the door for long."

"Okay then, that's why I'm a master healer, now come and refill your water pouch." she filled a bowl with water from a faucet then Katara filled her pouch. "Now, you know what works better than one master healer?"

"Two master healers!" The two of them created their water gloves and set to work on Jet as the noise grew even louder outside the door.

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**"ZUKO! **I could really use some bending right now!" Sokka yelled as he fought off three firebenders. He knocked one on the head with his boomerang, then kicked on of them in the face, knocking him out. The third one shot a blast of fire at him but he ducked and kicked his feet out from underneath him.

"I'm a little busy at the moment!" Zuko yelled back. He knocked out two more soldiers but they were soon replaced by four more. "Sokka we have to get them out of here now!"

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**"ARE **we done?" Katara asked. Jet opened his eyes weakly and looked up at her and smiled.

"Yes we're done, but he still needs some rest," said Lian drying her hands.

"We don't have time for him to rest, we have to help Zuko and Sokka now!" she felt Jet's face. "You're not burning up anymore, can you stand?"

He gripped the sides of the bed and pushed himself up. "Yeah, I think I can." His feet touched the floor and he was standing.

"Here, drink this; it will give you the illusion that you are fully healed and strong for about an hour, then you will have to have proper rest." Lian handed him a cup of a cherry red liquid that he took and drained.

"And Katara, I want you to take this," she pulled the ring off of her finger and handed it to Katara. "I would never forgive myself if I let anything happen to Kana's granddaughter." She slipped it onto Katara's finger. "Never take it off."

Katara admired the ring on her finger then looked back at Lian. "What about you? Won't they know you helped us?"

Lian laughed, "What more could they take from me? You just be safe."

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**"SOKKA **we can't hold them off much longer!" Zuko yelled more soldiers rounded the bend.

Just then, the door opened and Katara and Jet burst through. Jet swung his swords about taking out three soldiers at once. Katara fought viciously now that she had her bending back. But more soldiers continued to appear.

"Zuko! Blast a hole a hole in through the ship!" Katara yelled taking out another soldier.

"What good is that gonna do?!" Zuko yelled back.

"Through the wall! Now!" She punched a firebender who was about to stab Jet through the back and Zuko gathered up a huge hot fire ball and shot it through the metal wall of the ship. "Cover me!" She with Jet, Zuko, and Sokka at her back, she ran to the huge opening and froze a circle of ice on the water.

"Everybody on the ice now!" she pushed Sokka out the hole and Zuko after that. "Jet come on!" They knocked out the last remaining soldiers but they heard more coming to replace them.

"I'll hold them off. You have to go now." Katara was about to object but he grabbed her arms. "Listen! You have to get out of here and find Aang. I've done a lot of bad things in the past, I know this won't make up for them all but I've gotta try."

Katara felt tears well up in her eyes. "But-," his lips covered hers in a short but passionate kiss.

"You didn't feel anything did you?" he said pulling away and looking at her.

She nodded tearfully. "Of course I felt something Jet."

"Not what I want you to feel," he hugged her tightly. "Go now!" he pulled away and shoved her out the hole just as the group of soldiers appeared.

She landed on the block of ice and hesitated before propelling them away from the ship. When they were a safe distance away, they saw the ship burst in two and begin to sink.

"How do suppose that happened?" Sokka asked. Zuko shook his head and nodded towards Katara. She fell to her knees and hid her face in her hands. He gathered her up into his arms and she cried into his chest. Sokka frowned disapprovingly but didn't say anything.

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**Okay! I'm done with this chapter! I hope you all liked it! Review please! After I have 85 then I'll post the next one! Again, sorry I'm so late but I hope this chapter makes up for it. REVIEW! (please)**


	10. Jealousy

**No! This is wrong! I hate you you stupid writers of Avatar! I just watched "Day of Black Sun", if you haven't watched, watch it! If you have, you know why the freaking heck I am pissed off! I mean... OOOOOOOOOOO!! That's just... no! Bad Aang! And no Katara! and I hate your stupid slimy guts Azula! But I love you Zuko! Cuz you're hot! And Ursa... sorry, I won't give away anymore. Anyway, read my story. Oh, and "Day of Black Sun" is the only chapter I've seen from book three, so don't tell me **_**anything**_** or else I will be a very unhappy authoress! And what do unhappy authoresses not do? That's right, they do not finish their fics!**

**Anyways, this one is about the other half of the gaang in case you were wondering about them so, read please!**

* * *

**"OKAY**, that's all the earth and water benders from the east; they'll meet us at Kiyoshi Island about a week before the eclipse. Where to next Aang?" The three of them piled off of Appa and Aang stood at his head. Toph leaned against the bison next to him.

"Well, Paku and the other water benders from the northern water tribe are all at the South Pole, and we haven't been to the western swamps yet. I guess we'll go west first." he pulled two apples out of his pack and handed one to Toph. "But we should rest for now." he took a bit out of his apple and the two of them helped Iroh unpack.

"Are you ready to begin your training Aang?" The young Avatar bowed and backed five big steps away.

"I'm ready Master Iroh," he said taking a fighting stance.

Iroh laughed. "We are not going to use fire just yet Aang. Firebending begins with the breath. Now, take a horse riding stance." Aang spread his legs apart and pulled his fist back. "Now you are going to learn how to practice proper meditating. Close your eyes and breath in as you count to nine. Hold it for nine seconds then take nine more seconds to let it out. Try to focus just on your counting, clear your mind of everything else."

Aang did as he was told and breathed slowly. A million things immediately flooded into his mind but he ignored them. "One, two, three, four..." He breathed in. "One, two, three, four, five, six..." he held his breath. "One, two, three, four, five..." he breathed out. A feeling of having a center filled him and he gathered all of his power to it. "Seven, eight, nine..." breath out. "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven..." All of his thoughts gathered towards his center and then he saw Katara.

She was sitting on the ground with her face in her hands crying. "Katara?" Someone came towards her and wrapped their arms around her. "Shhhh. It's okay, I'm here." That someone rocked her back and forth as she cried into his shoulder. Aang strained to see who it was. "It'll be okay." Black hair. "Shhh. I'm here." Golden eyes. "It's gonna be okay." Scar. "Shhhh." Zuko.

* * *

**HIS** eyes flew open and he found himself in Toph's arms. "Aang! Are you okay? You were meditating, then your heart beat increased, then you were yelling and you passed out." He groaned, he had a horrible headache and he felt weak. He felt a cool hand on his forehead. "You're burning up! Now would be a really good time to have Katara with us!"

"Katara?" his vision came back to him. "Katara!" He struggled to sit up but Toph pushed him back down.

"Chill out Twinkle Toes. Sugar Queen's not here." Iroh came back with a bowl of water and she pressed a wet cloth to his forehead.

"Aang, what happened? When you meditate, you're supposed to clear your mind. What were you thinking about that made you freak out like that?" Iroh asked as he poured a cup of tea and pushed it into his hand. "Drink this, it will get rid of your headache."

He took the cup and sniffed it. It was slime green and looked like swamp water but smelled great. He sipped a bit and immediately he felt his headache begin to disappear. He drained the rest of it in one gulp but immediately regretted it as it scalded his throat. "Hot!" he cried as tears fell out of his eyes.

"Oh yes I forgot! Drink it slowly or you'll burn your throat!" Iroh said with his big grin. Aang coughed and Toph slapped his back then helped him sit up.

"Here, drink this, it's just water." she handed him another cup which he drained enthusiastically.

"Katara, I saw her, she was crying. I don't know why, and then-," he closed his eyes as he remembered Zuko invading his vision.

"And then what?" Toph asked.

He shook his head and wiped his eyes. "Nothing. She's fine."

* * *

_**SHE** stumbled blindly through the woods until she finally collapsed on the ground and hid her face. Her shoulders shook as she sobbed into her hands. _

"_Katara? Katara talk to me." He reached out to put a hand on her shoulder but it past straight through her. _

"_Katara?" They both turned at the sound of the voice._

"_Zuko?" They said in one voice. His was angry and threatening while hers was surprised and hopeful. He watched in horror as the firebender came towards Katara and hugged her while she sobbed into his shoulder. "Shhh, it's okay, I'm here." he rocked her back and forth in his arms and her shoulders stopped shaking and she buried her face in his chest. _

"_Katara? Katara no! No!" Tears poured out of his eyes but she didn't turn around, instead she sank deeper into Zuko's embrace. "Katara!" He reached for her but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't reach her. _

_Then, Zuko looked straight at him and smirked. "You've lost Avatar."_

* * *

**HE** jerked awake and found himself shaking and gasping for breath then looked around the camp for a comforting face but she wasn't there. She was somewhere else. Somewhere with _him_. He hid his face in his hands and sobbed. "I'm gonna kill you Zuko," he muttered between clenched teeth then he wiped his tears and got up. The moon was half full tonight; he wanted to practice his water bending.

She felt him toss and turn. She heard him call out _her_ name. She heard him wake. She heard him sob. She felt him tremble. She felt him leave. She stood silently and left followed.

He stepped into the cool water and enjoyed the shiver it sent up his spine as he waded deeper. He let out a breath and drew a silvery ribbon of water and bent it around him. He closed his eyes and felt himself become a part of the river. He heard her gentle encouraging voice in his ear telling him what he was doing wrong and what he was doing right. He heard her musical laughter as he splashed Sokka with a giant water ball. He felt her hands on his shoulders and a smile cross her lovely lips. He heard her say his name and he felt himself smile in return.

"Aang."

"Katara."

"No Aang, it's me."

"Toph?" she stepped out of the woods and nodded. She felt his disappointment as he waded out of the water towards her. "What are you doing up?"

"Couldn't sleep. What about you?" she asked drawing a circle in the dirt with her big toe.

He shrugged. "I had a bad dream." Toph stomped out two earth stools and the two of them sat.

"You wanna talk about it?" she asked.

"No."

Silence.

"It was about Katara wasn't it?" He nodded.

"I'm sure she's okay Aang," she said.

"It's not that."

"What is it then?"

He sighed. How was he supposed to tell her about Zuko? "Don't worry about it," he said looking away from her.

"You think she likes Zuko." He snapped his head around to look at her.

"How do you know that?"

"Why do you think I couldn't sleep? You were cursing him like crazy," she said twirling a three rocks around between her fingers. He watched her twirling the rocks and didn't say anything.

"What if she does?" he asked. She broke on of the rocks so that she had two left.

"Then it's her loss." _Oh wow I didn't just say that did I?_

"What?"

She broke the rocks frustratedly. "Listen Aang! Maybe it's best that she likes Zuko and not you! If she hasn't noticed by now the way you feel about her when everybody else already does, then maybe you should give up and move on!"

"Don't tell me what I should do! It's not like you have any experience with what I'm going through right now!" They both stood up agitatedly.

"I do know that all you've done was crush on Katara like some pathetic little boy while she babied the crap out of and it's disgusting!" she turned to leave back to the camp then stopped. "And maybe I've never experienced what you're going through, but you have no idea what I'm feeling right now." She stomped back towards the camp leaving a dumbfounded and wet Avatar staring at her back.

* * *

**"HEY** Toph, you need any help with that?" Aang asked the next morning as Toph was picking up a pack to place back into Appa's saddle.

"Nope." she slung it onto her shoulder and climbed up the side of the bison towards the saddle. Suddenly, Momo screeched out from a bush startling Appa making him knock Toph out of the saddle. "AAAAA!" she screamed but Aang ran and caught her before she hit the ground. He stood holding her for a very awkward moment in which the two of them turned bright red. "Thanks but I'm an earthbender Aang, I don't need saving." She raised a bit of earth underneath his feet and he stumbled forward and dropped her.

She dusted herself off and crossed her arms. "Why are you on the ground, we're supposed to be leaving now."

"We are not leaving until we talk!" Aang yelled standing up and dusting himself off.

"What is there to talk about Aang? Your stupid nightmares because I don't care about them! Why don't you find Katara and cry to her!" She went back to pack something else but he caught her wrist.

"What is your problem?!" he yelled spinning her around to face him.

"You apparently!" she yelled back.

"What are you talking about?" he asked puzzled.

"You're just so busy crying over Katara that you don't know what is right in front of your face!" she yelled.

"What are you saying?" he asked even though he was sure of what she was saying.

She shook her head. "Never mind, just don't worry about it okay?"

He nodded and they finished packing up camp in silence. All the while, Iroh had been watching from the shadows of the trees after he returned from the river filling their canteens with water. He sighed. "Young people."

* * *

**KATARA **sat on a rock under the light of a half moon by a running brook. She dipped her hand into the water and let it flow over her skin like silk. She raised her eyes to the moon and wondered about Jet.

"Katara?" Katara tore her gaze away from the moon and saw her brother standing a few ways away from her. She smiled and wiped away a stray tear and he came and hugged. "Are you okay?"

She nodded. "I'm fine." she sighed. "But before we parted, he kissed me, and he asked me if I felt anything." more tears escaped her eyes. "I did feel something but not what I feel when-," she stopped and Sokka wiped her tears away gently.

"It's okay, I know about the whole thing between you and Zuko," he hugged her again. "If it matters to you, I'm okay with it. He's a good guy."

She sighed again. "Not what I feel when I kiss Zuko." she sniffed and wiped more tears away. "I wanted to though! I wanted to but he knew that I didn't. I don't know how and I wish," she paused again. "I wish things didn't happen the way they did."

"Everything happens for a reason. Sometimes we don't understand what that reason may be but eventually we begin to realize what it is and then we appreciate it." They stood for a minute longer by the brook in silence.

"Ready to go back to the cave? I don't think Zuko's too happy being left alone." trying to crack a small joke.

Katara smiled and nodded. "Okay."

* * *

**ZUKO **woke up to an empty cave and a dying fire. He sat up and rubbed his eyes then looked out the mouth of the cave towards the moon and remembered when he'd first seen Katara bending in the ocean. He sighed then built up the fire; Katara and Sokka were probably off having a weird sibling moment. He suddenly felt really jealous of them; when he saw how Sokka was so protective of Katara, and just how much they loved each other, he felt sad because he knew that he and Azula would never have a bond like theirs.

He heard them coming back and he laid back down pretending to sleep.

"Are you okay now Katara?" he heard Sokka ask as they entered the cave.

"Yeah I'm fine." he opened his eyes slightly and saw Sokka hug Katara. After they parted, they both went to their sleeping bags and after a while, Sokka was snoring soundly.

"I know you're awake," Zuko's eyelids fluttered open and met Katara's blue ones. He smiled and sat up.

"I am now, are you okay?" she sat next to him and nodded. "So you guys knew Jet huh?"

"Yeah. I sorta had a crush on him once," she smiled as she remembered that silly hat she'd made for him.

"That would explain the kiss," a stake of jealousy stabbed through his heart as he remembered seeing him kiss her. But then again, he _was_ about to die.

"Yeah. He asked me if I felt anything," she shook her head as another tear fell from her eyes. "I did feel something, but not what he wanted. And not what I wanted."

"What did you want to feel?" he asked. She turned her face away from him but he put his finger under her chin and turned her face towards him again. "Katara?" He leaned forward and kissed her then pulled away again. "That?" She nodded. "Why?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. I guess it's because I knew he was about to die."

They were silent after that. Neither of them really knew what to say. "Can you kiss me again?"

He looked at her. "Why?"

She smiled. "I like that feeling." He smiled back and kissed her again. Somewhere else in the world, there was a troubled young airbender dreading that this moment was happening.

* * *

**HAPPY NEW YEAR!! Anyway, I was watching Highschool Musical 2 while I was writing this so it took longer than I wanted. Zack Efron is like, the HOTTEST guy alive! And he could sing! (sighs) That would be so great to sing with him. Anyways, REVIEW PLEASE!**


	11. Life

**Okay, so I'm watching America's Next Top Model cuz their showing cycles 1 through 9 so don't blame me if there are any typos or whatever in this chapter. So yeah. Anyways, thanks for all the reviews.**

* * *

_**I'LL **hold them off. You have to go now." Katara was about to object but he grabbed her arms. "Listen! You have to get out of here and find Aang. I've done a lot of bad things in the past, I know this won't make up for them all but I've gotta try."_

_Katara felt tears well up in her eyes. "But-," his lips covered hers in a short passionate kiss. _

"_You didn't feel anything did you?" he said pulling away and looking at her. _

_She nodded tearfully. "Of course I felt something Jet." _

"_Not what I want you to feel," he hugged her tightly. "Go now!" he pulled away and shoved her out the hole just as the group of soldiers appeared._

* * *

**AFTER **he shoved her out of the hole, more soldiers immediately appeared from around the bend and he met them head on. The tonic Lian gave him made him feel as strong as if he were fully healthy so he fought viciously.

There was a clang of steel on steel, the sound of angry voices shouting orders, and everywhere there was fire. Finally, he was overwhelmed, but so was the ship with flames. Everything was burning and the fire must have spread all the way to the furnace where all the coal was and the ship burst in two. The last thing he knew was fire, terrified screams, and he was in the water. Too weak to swim, he let the ocean claim him.

* * *

**AFTER **Jet and Katara left her room, Lian packed everything she might need into a bag and went to the door. The noise was louder and she heard Katara yelling for everyone to leave. She went back to the sink and filled a water pouch, then threw the door open.

Creating a shield of water and ice, she pushed through the fighting firebenders with strength she did not know she possessed. She made her way to the deck and dropped her shield then looked around her. The ship was smoking and everything was burning and she knew the ship would explode any minute. Cutting down every soldier who tried to stop her, she made her way off of the ship and onto the dock just as the ship exploded.

None of the soldiers cared anymore about the escaped prisoners or the old healer turned master waterbender. They all scrambled to save themselves when the ship exploded.

* * *

**HOURS **later, Lian walked on the beach with a few other healers from the town searching for survivors. Just because they were fire nation, they were still human, and the people in the earth kingdom town that owned the port would take care of them.

Lian knew that Katara and Sokka were alright and she prayed that Zuko was okay too. But she wondered about the handsome young man who told them to leave him behind.

After they had found all the survivors, Lian gave up searching for him and turned back towards the town. The sun was setting on the ocean and the sky exploded in a burst of fresh red, purple, orange, yellow and blue. She stopped and sat on the beach to watch the star come out.

"Dad?" she asked the sky softly. "Can you hear me?" The sun sank lower into the horizon. "What am I supposed to do now?" The sound of the waves crashing against the sand calmed her mind. "I miss you and mom. And I'm tired."

In the dimming light of the setting sun, she saw out in the ocean, the waves bringing in a log. She sighed and watched it as it moved closer to the beach. When it reached the sand, she saw that it was not a log, but another person.

She stood up and ran towards the body; it was the young man she'd been looking for. His face was pale as ever and there was no movement in his body. His lips were purple and his hair was wet and plastered against his face. She listened for a heart beat, but there was none. She checked for a pulse but it was so faint she thought she must have imagined it.

Lian raised her eyes to the setting sun. It was halfway gone. "I'm coming dad." She took a pen and paper out of her pack and wrote something on it then took off her bracelet and wrapped it into the paper. She shoved them back into her pack then took out her water pouch and withdrew the water. She wrapped it all around her hands and spread it around his body. Then she began to glow a strong silvery blue glow that came from her chest.

She pulled the glow from her chest and placed it over the young man's heart and she saw him begin to breath. "You lost your life, so I give you mine. Protect it well, and don't waste it. I will go now, to join my mother and father again."

He opened his eyes and saw a glowing goddess. Her long silvery hair flew around her aged face and her eyes glowed bright blue. No longer was she the bent old woman who he and Katara had first met. She was an immortal, a part of the spirit world.

The ocean spirits rose from the ocean and claimed her as theirs and then they retreated back into the water leaving Jet with Lian's life.

* * *

**Okay I'm tired. How'd you like? Tell me in a review please! (yawn) I'm going to sleep. Reviews please! I don't even have 105 yet but whatever. (Don't take that whatever seriously dude, I'm tired and I don't know what I'm talking about)**


	12. Ginger Tea

**Wow! My last chapter was horrible! I'm glad some of you still liked it though; that's the last time I'm writing a chapter when I'm half asleep watching ANTM. Anyways, yeah, Jet's back, and we are all confusicated. But that's good, that means you will review and tell me you are confusicated and I will have to sort out your thoughts with another chapter! **

**Just wondering, how many of you guys skip the part in BOLD??**

**And how many of you guys READ but don't REVIEW??**

* * *

_**OKAY**, in the last chapter Lian escaped from the ship before it exploded but Jet was blown into the water and he was too tired to swim so he drowned. When his body was washed up onto the beach, Lian found him and gave him her life and became an ocean spirit. What happened next??_

* * *

**"WE **found him on the beach half naked and half dead; with this," the young woman dropped the pack onto the table next to the bed the sick young man was sleeping in. "Should I check it to see who he is?"

The older woman took the pack and examined it then shook her head. "No, it is no business of ours who he is."

The younger woman frowned. "But Grandmother, what if he's fire nation?" The elder woman put her hand to the young man's forehead.

"He is sick, I will cure him, and that is the end of it," she said. The man groaned slightly.

"Where am I?" he asked softly.

"Safe and healing," said the older woman gently. "I am Youshi, and this is my granddaughter Yisu. She and her friends are the ones who found you on the beach."

The man's eye's opened and he turned his head to look first at the old woman, then at the young woman standing behind her.

Youshi was thin and small with white hair tied neatly in a bun. Yisu was also thin but strong and her black hair was tied in a bun similar to her grandmother's only she had two loose locks framing her face. "I'm Jet," he forced out and his head collapsed back down into the pillow.

"Will he be okay?" the voices grew fainter as he lost his consciousness.

"He'll be fine." and he heard no more.

* * *

**THE **stars were out and shining brightly and the waves crashed against the beach in an endless lullaby. In a town a little ways away from the port, all were asleep. All except for the young man, who was only just healing from too many weeks of illness and injury.

* * *

**JET **opened his eyes and raised his head. It didn't hurt anymore but he still felt quite lightheaded. He struggled to sit up then looked around the room. It was small and the only other object aside from the bed was a little wooden table next to it. On the table was a plain brown pack.

He slowly pushed himself up and swung his legs to the side of the bed. As the covers moved off of him he saw that he was shirtless and had a peculiar scar on his chest over his heart. There was a weird feeling in the room; it felt damp, especially the wall his bed was against.

The door opened and Yisu came in carrying a tray with a tea pot and two cups. "Hey! You're awake! I was worried for a while," she smiled and placed the tray on the little table. "Tea?"

Without waiting for him to answer she poured two cups of the steaming liquid and handed one to him. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore." He took the tea and sipped it. A sudden sense of warm silkiness rushed through him and filled him from head to toe. He blinked and looked at the tea. "What is in this?"

Yisu stared at him and sipped her tea. "It's just ginger tea, there's nothing special about it."

He sniffed it, not sure whether to believe her or not then he took another sip and the same silky feeling rushed through him. "Ginger tea never did that," he said.

"What?" she asked taking another drink.

"You didn't feel it?" he stirred the steam coming out of his cup and was surprised to see that it seemed to respond to his movement.

"It's warm... that's about all I felt."

He frowned then opened his hand over the cup and moved it up as if pulling and the tea rose up out of the cup. His eyes widened in surprise and he dropped it with a splash back into the cup.

"You're a water bender?" Yisu asked, her turquoise-green eyes widening as well.

He stared at the tea in the cup and then looked at her. "No! No I'm not!"

"I just saw you bending!"

"I can't bend anything! What did you put in this tea?!"

"Nothing! I told you it's just plain-,"

"Plain old ginger tea does not give people water bending skills!" he stood up and dropped his tea cup. It shattered into pieces and the tea spilled all over the floor. Yisu looked frighteningly at the spilled tea then at Jet. He put his hand on the wall. "What's on the other side of this wall?"

"The ocean," she replied bending down to clean up the mess.

"I can feel it," he murmured to himself, "How is that possible?"

"Ow!" Yisu hissed in pain and sucked on her finger as blood spilled out of a cut. He turned and knelt down to help her.

"Sorry," he muttered picking up the remaining pieces of the tea cup.

"Whatever," she said rolling her eyes.

He stopped and looked at her. "I didn't do this on purpose."

"Then clean it up!"

"How? It already sank into the wood!"

"Bend it out," she ordered.

"I'm not going to bend anything out," he said forcefully.

"Why? Are you afraid of your bending?" she challenged.

"I'm not supposed to be able to bend! I wasn't born a bender, I wasn't even born into the water tribe!" he yelled dropping the broken pieces of the cup onto the tray.

"So what?! And now you can bend! What's so horrible about that?"

"What if there's a price I have to pay for how much I bend?"

"That's ridiculous!"

"What's ridiculous is this!" he bent his wrist upward and all the tea was pulled up out of the wood. He dropped it frightfully back on the floor and stared at it. "That's not supposed to happen," he whispered. He sat against the bed and closed his eyes and sighed. "What happened to me?"

Yisu looked at him sympathetically and tucked a lock of black hair behind her ear. She sat next to him against the bed and looked at him. "Maybe it has something to do with that scar on your chest."

He opened his eyes and looked at his chest surprised. "I don't even know how I got it," he said.

Yisu bit the corner of her lip. "When my friends and I found you, you were glowing, and there was another glow out in the water too. And you had this pack with you." She grabbed the brown pack from the table and gave it to him. "Is it yours?"

He shook his head then opened the pack and turned it upside down. Various labeled vials and flasks fell out along with bandages and a container with some sort of past in it. "It looks like a healer's pack," he said. He looked inside to see if there was anything else and pulled out a rolled up piece of paper tied with a blue ribbon. "What's this?" he unrolled it carefully and a bracelet fell out.

_Dear Young Man,_

_I do believe your name is Jet but I could be wrong. Jet, when I found you, you were hanging over death by the thinnest and weakest of threads. I saw that that thread was about to break, so I gave you my life. You may find that along with my life, you may also have acquired some of my skills, such as waterbending. This may come as a slight shock to you if you do not read this before you discover it. Find Katara, she is probably the only waterbender more powerful than you are and she can help master it. Do not tell anyone about your ability, unless you trust them totally and completely. The time will come when the world will need to know of it. And you will know when that time comes. _

_You may be wondering why I gave you my life. I saw something in you Jet, your purpose in this world is not yet fulfilled and mine is. You must help the Avatar defeat the Fire Lord. With my life, you have my ability, and also, my responsibilities. The scar on your chest is my family crest, it is both the water tribe and the fire nation insignias morphed together. Fire and Water are two opposites that are meant to be together. _

_I have joined the ocean spirits, but I am also connected to the sun due to my parentage. When the sun touches the ocean, is the best time to communicate with me if you ever need to talk. _

_Give my bracelet to Katara when you find her. She will know what to do with it. Now, take care Jet, and remember that I am always with you._

_Sincerely yours,_

_Jong Kim Lian, daughter of Jong Puk Ku of the Fire Nation and Jong Jade Azlina of the Northern Water Tribe _

Jet reread the letter a few more times then handed it to Yisu. "Can I trust you?" he asked after she read it.

She looked at him wide eyed and nodded. "Yes. Yes you can."

Just then, the door opened, and Youshi entered with a smile. "You're awake! And getting to know each other are you?" Yisu and Jet looked at each other and nodded. Youshi came towards them and frowned at the tea on the floor. "What is this?"

"My fault," Jet said quickly.

"Oh well, at least it was spilled tea and not a spilled dam," she bent down to clean the mess with the rag she held.

"What?" Jet asked and he felt his heart stop.

"Our house and whole town was drowned when some psycho blew up the dam that held the river," Yisu explained. "Luckily a young man came and warned us about it. Everyone escaped safely, but we didn't find the one who blew the dam up." she sighed angrily. "If I ever meet the bastard who did that, I will kill him myself."

Youshi frowned again, "Don't say those things Yisu. They are bad for you." Yisu huffed then picked up the tray. "It is dinnertime, come and eat," she said to the two young people.

Jet looked at the stain on the ground and wondered what would have happened to him now if the people in the town had been there when the dam blew. He felt suddenly horrible. "I have to go now," he said standing up.

"Nonsense! You need to stay for dinner, and you're still not fully healed," Youshi objected.

He searched the room for his shirt. "You have already given me much more than I deserve."

"No. You will eat, then you will sleep, then I will make sure you are fully healed before I let you leave. No arguing!" she said when he opened his mouth. He closed it again and felt worse knowing that if it wasn't for Sokka, he would have killed this kind old woman. "You will find a shirt in the next room. Then I expect you to join me and Yisu."

With that, she turned and left leaving Jet feeling lower than platypusbear poop. He sat on the bed and put his face in his hands. Too much has happened in the past few days and he needed a break but he knew he wouldn't get one. Not until the fire lord was defeated. He heard the door slide open again and felt Yisu come sit next to him.

"Are you okay?" she asked putting her hand on his shoulder.

"What do you think?" he muttered running his hands through his hair.

"Sorry." she dropped something on his lap. "I brought you a shirt."

"Thanks," he took the shirt and pulled it on.

They were quiet for a while then Youshi called them. "You better put that on now and come eat. My grandmother takes it as an insult if someone refuses her dinner offer," Yisu got up and Jet followed her.

* * *

**AFTER **dinner, Jet was able to sneak outside to the beach. The sun was not quite on the water yet, so he sat down and waited. The waves crashed noisily onto the beach and the salty ocean breeze slapped his hair across his face and he brought his knees up to his chest. He watched as the sky exploded into a spectacular display of purples, blues, yellows, oranges and reds. Then, the sun touched the horizon and Jet jumped to his feet and waded into the water.

"Lian! Lian! Where are you? Lian!" He searched the water but he didn't see anything and the sun sank lower. "Lian! I have to talk to you!" he yelled and searched but didn't see anything. Then, the sun was exactly halfway in the water and there was a bright blue glow in the water. He watched it in fascination and it shot towards him knocking him down. The water rose up surrounding a figure then it fell away and Jet suddenly remembered the face of the goddess who saved him. The goddess looked down at him from two glowing eyes and smiled, she was more radiantly beautiful than ever.

"You called me?" she said, her voice was musical and powerful, he felt it fill his body the way the tea had only a hundred times stronger. Her long hair, white as the moon blew around her pale face. Her robed were blue and fire red like the sun.

"I-, I was-, I didn't-," he stuttered.

Lian smiled. "You didn't believe I would come?"

He nodded shamefully and looked down away from her. "Whenever you need me, I will be here." she bent down and raised his chin to look at her. Then, she blew a powerful gust of wind and he shut his eyes tightly. When he opened them again, he was in his room in Youshi's house soaking wet and shivering. He looked out of the little window and saw the sun sink below down into the ocean and the stars and pale moon appeared.

"You're wet. And shivering. Why are you wet and shivering?" Yisu came into the room and opened a closet that he thought was a wall. She took out a towel and handed it to him.

"I saw Lian." He said wiping his face. Her eyes widened.

"What did she say?"

"Nothing really. But I have to go first thing in the morning."

Yisu looked at him then at the floor sadly. "Oh."

Jet stopped drying himself and looked at her. "What's wrong?"

She shrugged. "Nothing. It's just- it was kinda nice having you here. And I'll miss you."

"Thanks for everything."

"No problem."

* * *

**I hope this one was better than the last one! REVIEW please! I got 112 last time so I'll ask for 125! THANK YOU! Seriously, review, I know at least half of you that read don't review and that makes me want to cry. (sniffs) PLEASE REVIEW! Oh, and I love all of you guys that do review. Cookies and candy for you! Oh my gosh, school starts again tomorrow! (stomps foot) man!**


	13. The Stormy Night

**Okay, finals officially suck. Especially Chemistry. Hey, at least I got 125 reviews like I asked for! Thanks you guys I love you all! Here's the next chapter especially for those who REVIEWED!!**

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**"SO **what do we do now?" The rain was pounded down outside the cave and the three teenagers were huddled together around the fire to keep warm. To avoid the wind that blew the rain in they had to move the fire to the very back of the cave.

"Now, we wait until the storm is over. When it's over, we need to find Aang and finish recruiting troops for the invasion"_**(A/N: WAIT! Azula knew about the invasion in the real show didn't she? That's why it failed so... Okay, Azula does not know about the invasion in my story okay? Or... hm... maybe she does. I'll figure something out. Alright back to the story!)**_said Katara after forcing her teeth to stop chattering. She wrapped her arms around her bare mid section and cursed Ty Lee for wearing such stupid clothes.

Zuko opened his hand to the fire and flames flowed out building it higher. Katara scooted closer thankfully and rubbed the goose bumps from her arms. Sokka's eyes darted first from Zuko to Katara and back to Zuko then again to Katara. He huffed and brought his knees up to his chest as another gust of wind blew rain through the mouth of the cave putting the fire out.

For the next few seconds in darkness, all they heard was the rain outside, their own teeth chattering and labored breathing, an occasional boom of thunder and crash of lighting striking across the sky.

"Ooookkkaayyy! This officially sucks!" said Sokka throwing his hands up.

"It's not like we could stop the storm Sokka," Katara said quietly between her chattering teeth. She hugged her knees to her chest and blew into her hands.

"Well, can we do something other than just sit here and freeze to death?" he asked desperately.

"What do you suggest?"

"Psh! Tssssht! Ftspsh! Anything but nothing! Hey! Let's play I spy!" He suggested enthusiastically.

"Sure! I'll start! I spy something cold, wet and miserable," Katara started with mock excitement.

"Oh I know! How about... us?!" Zuko answered just as sarcastically.

"Okay so maybe I Spy isn't the best game," said Sokka.

"Ya think?" Zuko muttered.

"How about Mao Says? I'll be Mao! C'mon you guys it'll be fun!" They heard him stand up. "Okay okay, Mao says, Zuko light a fire!" For a few seconds, nobody did anything then Zuko lit a small flame in his hand and threw it onto the fireplace. Sokka clapped his hands and laughed. "Hahaha! Okay, now everybody stand up so we could start!" The other two rolled their eyes and stood up, but Sokka stopped and pointed a finger at them both. "Haha! I got you both! Mao never said to stand up! I win already!"

Katara couldn't help but smile and Zuko scowled, "This is the stupidest game ever."

"At least he's trying. Come on Zuko you be Mao!" Katara said grinning.

"Yeah Zuko you be Mao!" Sokka said.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me!" he said incredulously but the two siblings folded their and watched him expectantly with amused expressions on their faces.

He scratched the back of his head then looked at his feet and back at them. "Um, Mao says... put your hands on your head." The two of them put their hands on their head. He raised an eyebrow. "Mao says touch your toes." They touched their toes and Zuko grinned. "Mao says jump up." They jumped up and Zuko laughed. "You guys are out; Mao never said to come back down!"

"You cheated!" The siblings exclaimed tackling him to the ground.

"Get 'im Katara!" Sokka held him down and Katara started tickling him.

"Haha! Aa! Stop it! I'm really ticklish! Haha! Stop!" He squirmed about trying to get out of Sokka's hold and away from Katara's tickling. "Stop! Please!" He got one arm free and grabbed Katara around the waist and the three of them rolled around laughing and yelling and until they reached the mouth of the cave where lightning crashed and thunder boomed angrily as if disapproving of the first happy and carefree moment they've had in months.

Finally, they lay on the ground out of breath and smiling widely. "I haven't laughed like this since... a long time," said Zuko putting his hands behind his head.

"Really? I haven't laughed like that since we were last with everybody. We'd laugh all the time," said Katara mimicking his movement.

Zuko chuckled. "It does seem kinda hard to keep a straight face when you're traveling with Sokka."

"Hey!" Sokka protested.

Katara giggled. "It is pretty hard huh?"

The three of them sighed and stared up at the cave ceiling as the fire crackled at their feet and the storm raged outside and the shadows merrily danced along the cave walls.

* * *

**THE **rain pounded down outside her tent and she restlessly got up and stepped outside into the wet stormy cold. She spread her arms out in front of her and raised her face to the sky and closed her eyes.

Aang sat in the opening of his tent and rested his head in his knees. He had so much on his mind. They had two months before the invasion and they still haven't recruited all of their troops. The storm was slowing them down; there was no way Appa could fly in this weather, and Toph was mad at him and Katara and Sokka was missing and who knows what Azula did to them by now! He didn't really care what happened with Zuko. Why not? Was it because he still thought the fire prince was evil? Or was it jealousy?

He slapped himself. _Him_, the Avatar, jealous of _Zuko_, the banished prince? He laughed uncomfortably.

The banished prince who gave up everything so that he could help the Avatar. The banished prince who knew his life would be hunted until the Fire Lord was defeated. The banished prince, the _handsome_ banished prince... with Katara. He shook his head; Sokka wouldn't let anything happen between them.

He sighed and looked out into the curtain of rain, and saw Toph standing there, soaking wet with her arms spread and her face to the heavens. He smiled as he watched her spin around and dance and stick her tongue out to taste the sweet rain.

The young airbender stood up and stepped out into the storm and lightning flashed across the sky. A few seconds later, the thunder boomed dangerously but Toph was oblivious to it all as she splashed joyously around in the puddles.

Aang walked towards her and she didn't notice him until he was only a few feet away. "Oh, it's you. What do you want Twinkle Toes?"

He shrugged. "Nothing, why are you out here in the rain?"

She raised her face back up to the sky. "I wish I could see it," she said softly. "I can't even imagine what it must be like to see."

Aang scratched the back of his head. "Well, maybe I could explain it to you." She turned towards him.

"And how do you plan to do that?"

He smiled and took her hand. "C'mon." He pulled her to a log near the fireplace and they sat down.

"Right now, you already see a color. It's black. Darkness, you know, empty," he said.

"Tell me somethin' I don't know," Toph said boredly.

"Just bear with me here," he said. Toph huffed. "Okay, so just think of colors as emotions. Like grey for example, you feel gloomy and sad, like the rain is gray."

"Okay, so gray is sad," said Toph.

"Yeah, and so is some kind of blues. Like when you cry because you've been hurt by someone."

Toph nodded and lightning streaked across the sky.

"Next is green. Green is the color of plants and grass. The emotion it's connected to is jealousy. So if you're jealous, you think green."

"That's weird," said Toph. _So all this time I'm feeling green?_

"Mmhm. Then there are the three warm colors, red, orange, and yellow. When you feel the sun on your face, you think warmth and happiness. When you're angry you think red."

Toph sniggered. "Like Zuko?"

Aang laughed but he felt himself turning green, "yeah, like Zuko. Red is also what you feel when... when you love someone. So when you feel your heart start to race, and your cheeks become hot even when the sun isn't shining, then you're thinking red."

Toph felt herself turning red and she turned away from him. "Are you okay?" he asked.

She started to nod then stopped and shook her head, "It's just really hard you know? When you feel two colors at once and you don't know how to deal. Like, you're suffocating. Is there a color for that?"

Aang thought for a moment. "I don't think so. What two colors are you feeling?"

Toph got up. "Don't worry about it. Can you bend me dry then keep the water off me till I get to my tent?"

"Sure." When she was gone he stayed on the log and put his chin in his hands and sighed. Suddenly, another flash of lightning lit the sky and he saw across the camp in a tree a human form. He jumped up and made a water whip from the rain and struck out across the camp.

"Aaaaaahhh!!" Someone screamed and fell with a thump out of a tree and Aang flew to them and landed on the person's back.

"Who are you and what do you want?" He grabbed the person's shoulder and gasped at who it was.

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**I've noticed, it's been quite a while since I left you guys a cliff hanger. Maybe it'll make you REVIEW PLEASE!! Thank you! Now that you've got the message, please review and I will post the next chapter... Do you think 140 is too much? I don't! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!! 140 reviews and you'll see who it was! THANK YOU!**


	14. Reunions and Heartbreaks

**Okay guys, thank you all so much for the reviews! And if I seemed at all (excuse my language) bitchy in any of my answers to your reviews, I'm really sorry! Things have just been pissing me off lately and now, I feel like I don't deserve all you of you being so nice to me. I'm sorry again; will you still read my stories? Please? Please with earnestness from when I first started to write this?!**

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**"SOKKA!"** Aang bent down and pulled his friend up and hugged him tightly. "I was so worried about you!"

"AOW! Aang! Good to see you too but I can't breath you're squishing my lungs!" Sokka said pushing the airbender away.

"Sorry. Where's Katara and Zuko? Are they here? Is Katara okay? Are they still with Azula? How'd you guys escape? Is Katara okay?" the little avatar questioned excitedly.

"Aang! Calm down! Katara and Zuko are alright! They're asleep in a cave not far from here. I just left cuz I had a sudden call to nature then some stupid animal stole my boomerang and ran al the way down here and up a tree!" Sokka shook his fist at the big green eyes staring down at him, then the next thing he knew he had a shrieking Momo screeching hitting him repeatedly on the head with the handle of the boomerang.

"Haha! I think Momo missed you Sokka! Hey, what're we waiting for c'mon let's go get Katara which way is the cave how far away is it are you sure they were sleeping how close was Zuko to-," he grabbed hold of Sokka sleeve and started to pull him into the forest when he was stopped by a-,

"Snoozles! You're alive!" He was then pummeled by a little grinning earthbender and once again he couldn't breath.

"Again with the lung squishing!" he said squirming out of Toph's iron grasp.

Toph laughed good-naturedly and punched him in the arm. "Hey, where are Sugar Queen and Scar Face?"

"Ow!" he rubbed his arm. "They're fine; I left them in the cave a little way away from here."

"Well come on! We have to go get them!" Aang grabbed Sokka by the sleeve again and started pulling him into the forest.

"It's okay Aang they're safe. We can go back and get them in the morning when the storm is over; it seems to have gotten worse since I left." As if on cue, the rain intensified and the lightning flashed even more dangerously.

"We can't leave them up there alone, won't they worry about you?"

"Aang it's too dangerous to go back up there right now, the best thing to do is wait until morning! They're fine Aang! They both really powerful benders they can take care of themselves!"

Before the upset Avatar could protest any more Toph stomped a bigger tent out of the ground and ushered them in.

"What about Iroh? Is he okay?" Sokka asked noticing the old firebender was not with them.

"He's fine; he's sharing a tent with Appa, it's warmer with the big fluffy monster radiating heat like ten pot belly stoves," said Toph shaking her hair out. It poofed out in a giant frizzball and she sat down grinning. "So Snoozles, how'd you guys escape?"

Sokka began his narration on how they woke up in the cell and how Katara had been injured (Aang had plenty of questions about that much to Toph's annoyance), about Kim Lian, how she he gave them the potion to help them escape, and about Jet and how he stayed behind for a chance of redemption.

"I don't know what happened to Lian or to Jet, or if they're even alive anymore." Sokka put his face in his hands and sighed. The other two were silent for a heavy moment, and the only sound was that of the storm outside.

After a while, Aang stood up, "I'm going to get Katara." He didn't say anything about Zuko.

"No Aang, it's much too dangerous and there's still way too much at stake to risk losing you again," said Sokka standing up.

"We can't just leave her there alone!" he protested grabbing his glider.

Sokka stood in the doorway. "I'm not gonna let you go out there. And she's not alone, she's with Zuko."

"And you trust him!? Don't you remember all the times he tried to kill us? He's not a good guy!" the boy said angrily trying to push past him.

"You wouldn't know that! Who's spent almost two months with the guy in the first place? You don't know him Aang! He's changed I know he has!" _Oh my God I'm defending Zuko! Has the world gone mad?!_

"How do you know?" Aang demanded.

"He's saved my life plenty of times and you know that!"

"I don't care! He hasn't changed he's not capable of change! If he had the chance he would turn on us again I know it!" The poor little Avatar was getting so mad and so worked up he was shaking.

"He had been given that chance, remember? He could've turned on us then and there but he didn't because he changed!" Sokka was getting more and more agitated as well.

Aang grit his teeth then stood solidly before Sokka. "I'm going whether you like it or not."

The older boy crossed his arms. "I don't like it. And you're not going unless you can move me."

Aang stomped his foot and Sokka was neck high in the ground. "Aang! She's fine! You don't have to save her from anything or anyone!"

But the airbender ignored him and stepped out into the storm.

"Aang! Aang!" he saw Toph sitting there staring at him with cloudy green eyes. "Why aren't you stopping him?!" he demanded.

Toph pushed a lock of hair behind her ear. "What do I care?"

"He's your friend!" Sokka shrieked.

"So what? It's not like I can change his mind. He doesn't listen to reason when it comes to Katara," She said boredly.

"What are you talking about?"

"Isn't it obvious? He's totally in love with her," she kicked up a ball of dirt and threw it out the opening of the tent.

"What?! That's crazy talk!" Sokka protested.

"Is it really? Think about it Snoozles." She patted his head then got up and stood in the corner of the tent and stomped up two more walls to conceal her. "Good night."

"Hey! What about me! Are you just gonna leave me in the ground like this!? Hey! Toooooph!" he wined. From behind her walls, she smashed the ground with her fist and Sokka popped out.

"Thanks."

* * *

**A **draft of wind blew in through the cave waking the sleeping waterbender. Katara's eyes opened slowly. She yawned then sat up and rubbed her eyes and blinked. As her eyes grew accustomed to the dark, the noticed the fire had reduced itself to coals. She looked around the small cave and she saw one figure slowly rise and fall in steady breathing motion, the other was no where to be seen.

Lightning flashed and thunder boomed, the rain fell mercilessly blinding him and yet he continued the climb. He would not leave Katara alone and cold in a mountain cave with that monster.

"Zuko! Sokka's not here! Zuko wake up! Sokka's gone!" She shook the sleeping firebender vigorously until he started groaning.

"Katara do you really have to wake me up now I just got to sleep," he mumbled turning onto his other side.

"Zuko! My brother's _missing_!"

"Maybe that's a good thing," he murmured into his arm.

"Zuko!" she gasped and smacked the side of his head.

"Ow!" Zuko sat up and rubbed his head. "I was kidding!" Katara crossed her arms and huffed. "Okay I'm sorry. But there's really bad storm out, he probably just left to pee or something, I'm sure he's fine."

"But what if something happened to him? Like he got struck by lightning or-," She stood up and began naming a list of possibilities that might have happened to him and Zuko watched her with an eyebrow raised and an amused expression on his face.

"Zuko!" she shrieked when she saw his face. "Aren't you the least bit concerned?"

He shrugged. "More amused. I think you worry too much."

"Well excuse me for caring a bit about my brother!"

"Katara, I'm sure he's fine. He can take care of himself." He leaned against the wall of the cave and watched her pace then he chuckled softly.

"What's so funny?" she demanded stopping in front of him.

"You look like your brother did when you were in the sick ward. Only, you're way cuter than him," he said grinning.

She sighed and dropped down in front of him. "Why are you so charming?"

He ran his fingers through his hair and shrugged. "I dunno; I can't help it. I'm probably the single most charming guy you'll meet." he finished with a huge grin and she couldn't help but laugh.

"I guess he should be fine. Maybe he found some other cave to stay in so that he won't have to risk getting hurt while coming back up here," she sat against the wall next to him and closed her eyes. "I wish this storm would end; it's so cold."

Zuko looked at her then took her into his arms and radiated heat off of himself to her.

"Thanks," she said into his arm.

"No problem."

She closed her eyes and sank deeper into Zuko's embrace and felt him stroke her hair until she fell asleep.

* * *

**"AAAAAAA!!"** Lightning struck a nearby tree and a large branch dropped into the heartsick Avatar's path. He fell backwards and tripped over large rock and he hit the ground hard scrapping his elbows drawing sticky blood. He gritted his teeth and got up then continued to climb the mountain.

Finally, he saw up ahead a faint orange glow, which he was sure was a fire from Katara's cave. He quickened his pace despite his aching legs, bleeding cuts, and throbbing bruises.

"Katara! Katara!" He ran as fast as his legs would permit him but his vision was blurred by tears and rain, his ears were deafened by thunder and his own screams, his pain was numbed by the rain and his will to see the one he loved; so excited and worked up was he to see her again, he forgot to think of what he had feared until he saw it.

There he stood, a few feet from the entrance to the cave, there he saw her smiling softly in _his_ arms, there he saw _him_ stroking her hair, there he felt his heart break and shatter into pieces small enough to fit through the eye of a needle, there he felt himself get hit with the awful truth that he knew was bound to happen but refused to see it, there he collapsed to his knees as the tears poured from his eyes and he sobbed like a babe who'd just witnessed it's mother murdered, there he passed out under the trees and in the storm that washed the shattered pieces of his heart away.

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**Okay, um, yeah this is really sad, and I want to cry and slap myself for breaking poor Aang's heart. (Smack!) Ow! That was weirdly involuntary! **

**REVIEW! I'm gonna ask for 155 this time! Can I please have them? :)**


	15. Jet's Stalker

**Wow! I got my reviews faster than usual! Thank you **_sesshomaruwriter_** for my 155****th**** review! I might have to start asking for twenty per chapter! (Just kidding, I love writing this as much as you like reading it; don't tell anyone I said that or else they might stop reviewing;) Anyways, thank you all so much and I hope you enjoy this next chapter!**

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**THE **storm had finally calmed down. There was no more thunder and no more lightning, only a steadily falling rain. It fell onto the campsite of the young wandering warriors, outside the cave of the two young sweethearts, onto the back of the heartbroken little boy, and onto the fire of a young man who is still very troubled and confused about his newfound ability.

* * *

**HE **pulled the hood of his cloak up over his head and wrapped it around himself tightly but it did little to prevent the cold from seeping through his clothes and chilling him to the bone. His teeth chattered uncontrollably and the fire went out for the tenth time. He sighed in frustration but didn't try to relight it again.

Suddenly, in the woods behind him, he heard a stick snap and someone fall hard as if from a tree. "OW!" Quickly, he jumped to his feet, drew his swords and charged towards the voice. "AAAAHH!" the voice came again this time closer to his left. He pushed aside a bunch of shrubs and his eyebrows raised when he saw the source of the sound.

"Hehe! Hi! Jet! It's good to see you again! So how've you been?" The girl was tangled up in a tree with her arms and legs in distorted and awkward positions.

"Yisu, what the hell are you doing here?" Jet asked putting his swords back into their sheaths. "And how did you get yourself stuck in a tree?"

"Ha! Don't ask, can you just get me down from here? Please?" Jet shook his head as if to clear his vision then he climbed the tree to her.

"What are you doing here?" he asked again as he was untangling her.

"I'm enjoying the view; what do you think I'm doing!? I'm following you!" He threw her over his shoulder and jumped to the ground.

"Why?!" He demanded after setting her down.

She pulled a twig from her hair and pushed a lock behind her ear. "Why not?" she grinned cutely but Jet's expression didn't soften. Her smile faded and she looked ashamedly at her feet. "Okay. I'm running away. My grandmother had me betrothed to this really obnoxious and annoying earthbender and I thought when you were with us she would change her mind and maybe she'd-," she blushed and didn't finish.

"Maybe she'd what? Let you marry _me_?" he looked at her with a slightly shocked and more so amused expression.

She wrung her hands and avoided looking at him. "Um... well, not- yeah."

He crossed his arms over his chest. "How old are you?"

She looked at him. "Fifteen."

"How old is that guy you were betrothed to?"

"Nineteen."

Jet looked at her. "Is you're grandmother on something?"

"What does that mean?" she asked with a puzzled expression on her face.

He shook his head. "Never mind. We need to get you back to your town and your grandmother and your fiancé right now." He took her arm and started to pull her away but she twisted out of his grasp.

"I'm not going back there!" she said stomping her foot. "You don't know what he's like! He's so proud and full of himself it makes me sick!"

"Well _I'm_ not gonna marry you!" Jet yelled.

"You don't have to! I don't want to marry you anyway!" she yelled back crossing her arms.

"Then what are you doing here?" he asked frustratedly.

"I want you to take me with you," she said.

He gaped at her.

"You don't have to take me far, just to the next earth kingdom town we pass," she said quickly.

Jet scratched the back of his head. "No."

"No?"

"No. I can't be constantly babysitting you all the time! You'd slowed me down and I have to find the Avatar as soon as possible," he said.

"I'm not a baby! I don't need to be baby sat! I can take care of myself!" she protested.

"You got stuck in a tree!"

"A common mistake made by many!"

"Many ten year olds!" Jet was getting quite annoyed by this girl now. "Yisu I can't take care of you and myself at the same time. What if we run into firebenders?"

"I can fight." she stepped back into a fighting stance and looked at him as if asking him to attack her.

"I'm not gonna fight you," he said looking at her as if she was joking.

"Why? Cuz I'm a girl?" she challenged.

"No. One," he stepped towards her and pushed her into the mud with his pinky. "Because your stance sucks."

"I wasn't ready!" she protested.

"Two, you should always be ready." he pulled her up and bent the mud off of her then made a back stance. "Fifty percent of your weight should be on your back leg, and fifty percent on your front leg. You should stand as if balancing on a fence." He watched her as she made her own back stance. "Almost right." He stood behind her so that her back was to his chest and took her hands. "When your right leg is back, you should have your left hand out with your thumb in and your right hand above your solar plexes and open as if you're holding a hot cup of tea."

"There!" He said. He pushed her chest then her back and then down on her shoulders. "You're solid as a rock."

She smiled and punched experimentally. "Good job! Now go home." he turned to leave but she caught his hand.

"Jet! You're not gonna leave me here all alone are you?" she said looking at him with pleading eyes.

"Why not? You can fight now remember?" Her turquoise eyes grew bigger and she made that face girls make when they want something from guys. _(A/N: You all know what I'm talking about:)_ "No! No, no, no, no, no, no, no, NO! Yisu stop making that face I'm not taking you with me!" her eyes grew moist and her shoulders started to shake.

"Okay. It was... stupid of me to ask," she dropped his hand and then turned and slowly walked back to the tree she'd been tangled in. She sat down and brought her knees up to her chest. "You don't have to take me; I'll be fine by myself."

Jet looked at her back guiltily and bit his lip. "Yisu, it's not that I don't want to take you it's that I can't."

Her shoulders shook even more and the rain added to more of an innocence effect. "Yisu stop it! Please!" he begged walking towards her. He knelt down and wrapped his arm around her shoulders awkwardly. "Don't cry. Stop crying please!" She began to sob even louder and she hid her face in her hands. "Stop please! I'll do anything!"

"You, won't, take, meeeeee!!" She sobbed even more and turned away from him.

"I told you I want to-,"

"No you don't! You don't care about me! You want me to marry that freak and be miserable for the rest of my life don't you? You don't care! Nobody does!" And she cried loudly into her hands leaving poor Jet feeling so miserable and awful he almost slapped himself.

He sighed. "Fine."

Yisu sniffed. "Huh?"

"Fine," he repeated. "I'll take you with me."

"Really?" her face brightened instantly.

"Just _please_ stop crying!" he begged. She smiled and threw her arms around him.

"Aw Jet! I knew you cared!"

Jet raised his eyes to the sky and asked the gods what he just did.

"I found a cave a little way up the mountain; we could go there and wait until the rain stops," he packed his things into his little pack.

Yisu stood by and watched him. He noticed and looked at her. "Where's your stuff?"

"Um... v-very long story, actually, involving a chicken-pig and a few saber-tooth moose lions." she said scratching her head.

"A few saber-tooth moose lions?"

"Well, five. Or six. Maybe seven," she shuffled her feet and blushed.

"What did you-,"

"Do you have any food?" she asked before he could finish. "I'm really hungry."

Jet slung his pack over his shoulder. "Let's get to the cave first." he started forward and she ran to catch up with him.

"But I haven't eaten for two days, since I lost my stuff," she said.

"Maybe you shouldn't've gotten seven saber-tooth moose lions on your tail," he said sarcastically.

"You're heartless," she said.

"No, I'm just holding you to your promise that you won't slow me down, now hurry up and walk next to me not behind me. I thought I made it clear that I don't want to have to worry about you constantly." he answered.

"You act like I'm a little kid," she said running to keep up with him.

"You're _acting _like a little kid," he answered.

"No I'm not!"

"Yes, you are."

"I am not!"

"I'm not gonna argue with you."

"Why?"

"It makes you seem even more like a little kid."

She looked at him with her mouth open to say something but then shut it with a snap and huffed.

Jet looked at her out of the corner of his eye and smirked.

* * *

**HE **walked into camp with his head hung and his spirits dampened by more than just the rain. Behind her walls, Toph felt him enter and she knew immediately there was something wrong. Went he entered the tent, she felt him crawl into a corner and heard him sobbing into his knees.

Quietly, she pushed aside a block of dirt and slowly made her way towards him. "Aang? Are you okay?"

She heard him sniff and wipe his tears. "I-I'm fi-fine."

She touched his shoulder and felt him flinch. "You wanna talk about it?"

"I'm not- I-I'm- I'm not-," a fresh draught of tears fell from his eyes and he buried his face back into his knees. "I can't-,"

Toph wrapped her arms around him. "She's missing out on a great guy," she said softly.

"But I- I love h-her," he sobbed. "I have for s-so long." Toph didn't know what to say; it was always Katara's job to comfort Aang. "I don't know what to do anymore," he said as he wiped his tears and sniffed.

"There's not much you can do, except for cry a little and eventually get over her and move on," she said. _Hey that was actually some pretty good advice_.

"But I don't want to get over her," he said sniffing.

"Why? That's stupid! She doesn't want you! If she did she would probably have said something a long time ago instead of make out with Scarface!" _Oh crap! That was the wrong thing to say!_ "You know what?" she stood up, "I don't care anymore. You just go ahead and keep crying over her, it's not like it's gonna change anything!"

She stomped back to her side of the tent and hid behind her walls as tears fell from her eyes.

Now, Aang was feeling worse than ever and more tears fell from his own eyes.

* * *

**KATARA **woke up with her head on Zuko's chest and his arms still wrapped around her. They were both in the sitting position they had fallen asleep in and Zuko was still sleeping peacefully.

She dropped her head back down onto his chest and sighed contently, he was so warm. The rain still fell outside but it was no longer very dark out and the lightning and thunder had ended.

Katara thought of the dream she had just woken up from. What had it been about? She closed her eyes again, and piece by piece it came back to her.

_His big grey eyes were red and swollen from crying all night long. "Why? I love you Katara. How could you do that to me?"_

_Katara looked at him. She was sad that she'd hurt him, but why didn't he say something before? It wasn't her fault and yet she still felt guilty. "I'm sorry Aang." She reached out to hug him but she couldn't reach him. _

"_Why? I love you."_

"_I'm sorry."_

"_I love you." He kept saying it over and over again and it filled her head like an overplayed song. "I love you."_

"_Stop Aang. Please don't say that!"_

"_I love you Katara."_

"_Stop!"_

"_I love you."_

Her eyes opened again and she found herself looking back into two warm golden ones. "Good morning," he said then he looked outside. "The storms over and the rain's about to stop. Good things will happen today."

Katara smiled then stood up and stretched. "I hope you're right Zuko." but and the dream still haunted her.

* * *

**Okay!**


	16. Tears & Dragon's Breath

**Hahahahaa! Okay! I forgot to leave a note at the end of the last chapter and you guys know me so well you still reviewed! Aw! Thank you! Hey, um, sorry I didn't update sooner, I was totally swamped with a whole bunch of homework but no worries! Here's the next chapter and I hope you enjoy it!**

* * *

**"HOLD **on." Jet held out his arm to stop Yisu from walking any further then pushed her into the bushes and jumped in after her.

"Jet what's-," she started but Jet stopped her.

"Sh!" He covered her mouth and held her close to the ground. "Someone's coming and right now I don't want to run into anybody."

Yisu's cheeks felt warm and she nodded wide-eyed.

* * *

**THE **rain had reduced to a light sprinkle and Zuko and Katara packed their few belongings and left the cave in hopes of finding Sokka.

"I'm sure he's fine Katara," said Zuko pushing the tree branches away so that he and Katara could get through.

"I hope you're right. But you know my brother, he's probably up to his neck in dirt again with a baby saber tooth moose lion taunting him," she smiled. "did I tell you about that?"

"No, but I'm thinking I want to hear about it," he said looking back at her.

"Well, we all stopped in a canyon so that Toph could start teaching Aang earthbending..."

The footsteps grew closer and Jet tensed as he heard a soft murmur of voices.

"Jet!" Yisu hissed.

"What?"

"You're squishing my lungs!" she gasped.

"Sorry!" he pushed himself up slightly and then the footsteps and the voices stopped suddenly. "They heard us!" but the voices and the footsteps started again, and just as he let out a sigh of relief he felt a sharp sting on his arm then someone grabbed his shoulders and pulled him out of the bushes.

"Jet!" the person holding his arms behind his back let him go and he turned around and saw Zuko standing there with a shocked expression on his face.

"Jet?" Katara came from behind him and her eyes widened. "Jet!" The next thing he knew an overexcited and happy Katara had jumped into his arms hugging him and asking question after question. "I though you were dead! How did you escape? Are you okay? What happened after Ty Lee's ship exploded?"

"Katara, Katara calm down! I'll explain everything in time just- where's Sokka?"

Katara stepped out of his embrace and shrugged worriedly. "We were just coming down the mountain to look for him."

"I'm sorry. I hope he's okay." Jet patted her shoulder sympathetically then as if suddenly remembering something, he jumped and went back to the bush and returned with Yisu. "Katara, Zuko, this is Yisu. She and her Grandmother found me on the beach and helped me. Without her help I'd probably be dead right now."

Yisu blushed and smiled, "He doesn't mean that. It was more my grandmothers healing and the ocean spirit that kept him alive. I just gave him ginger tea."

"Ocean spirit?" Zuko asked.

Jet raised his hand. "Once again, I'll explain everything in time, right now let's find Sokka."

The rain finally ended and the sun peeked through the clouds. The four of them continued down the mountain in high spirits.

* * *

**AS **the rain finally ended, Iroh opened his eyes and yawned. He looked at Appa who was still asleep and smiled. "Something is going to happen today. Something wonderful is going to happen today. I can feel it in my bones."

He stretched and stepped out of his earth tent and beheld the camp before him. Everywhere was muddy and wet. The wood for the fire was soggy and broke when slightly bent and the fireplace was one big puddle. The old bender frowned. "Now this won't do at all." and he set to work cleaning up and building a new fireplace.

* * *

**TOPH **awoke to the smell of wet earth and a delicious aroma. Iroh must be cooking breakfast. She opened her eyes and rubbed them. They hurt and she could tell they were swollen from crying most of the night. She sniffed and sat up. The rain had stopped she could tell and she heard Aang stirring outside.

Aang woke up and the first thing he knew was he felt stiff. His muscles ached, his head felt light and his heart was heavy. All he wanted was to close his eyes and go back to sleep and possibly never wake up. He remembered what had happened the previous night and he forced down the fresh draught of tears that threatened to fall. He'd done enough crying last night, he couldn't cry anymore. He was the Avatar; the Avatar couldn't let a girl stop him from fulfilling his duty to bring peace to the world. No matter how much it hurt, he knew he had to let her go; he could never be with her.

* * *

_**HE'LL **come for me. I know he will." she held herself and sat in the corner of the cell._

"_No he won't. He doesn't know where you are. He doesn't know where to look. You'll be dead long before he'll ever find you." that horrible smug voice! It was coming from his own mouth!_

"_He'll come for me. He'll come. And when he does, he'll kill you." her voice quivered and he wanted so much to wrap his arms around her and tell her everything would be okay but instead he threw his head back and laughed._

"_You stupid girl! He's not going to come for you. He probably forgot all about you by now!"_

"_No. No he hasn't. He's looking for me."_

"_How would you know?"_

"_I can feel it."_

"_Feel what?"_

"_I love him. He loves me. I know he's coming."_

_He heard himself laugh again but it was her voice coming from his mouth. "Stupid, stupid girl! Love? Love is an illusion. A perverted form of hate. There is no such thing."_

"_That's because no one has ever loved you. You're a natural born monster! How could anyone love a monster built on evil? All you want is power. You don't deserve love!"_

_He watched in horror as he saw himself slap her across the face, and he watched helplessly as she fell on her side and coughed up blood. _

"_Don't speak of what you don't know." He felt himself draw a dagger from his belt. "I think I'll just kill you now." _

"_Sukki! Sukki no!" but the words didn't emerge. He grabbed Sukki's throat and squeezed. He felt her breathing become shallow and felt her hands trying to pull his hand away. He felt himself smile then laugh at her pain. He wanted to cry. He kept trying to stop himself but he was powerless, all he could do was watch helplessly as her life slowly slipped away from her. _

_The hand holding the dagger raised slowly and he saw her bloodshot eyes widen in terror. "Sokka!" she gasped. "Sokka please! Sokka where are you?!"_

_Once again he felt his lips move and that horrible voice speak. "Your love won't save you now! Where is he? Huh?! He's not here is he!" He felt that sick pleasure well up inside of him and his grip on her throat tightened._

"_He'll... he'll-," he saw his hand move and plunge the dagger into her neck._

"SUKKI!" he woke up in a cold sweat and tears were running down his face. He couldn't stop them and he didn't want to. "Sukki!" he sobbed into his hands. "I'm so sorry Sukki! I'm so sorry!" He cried shamelessly on.

When he finally couldn't conjure up anymore tears, he grit his teeth and gripped his sword. "I swear, I won't stop looking for you." He stood up and wiped his eyes. "And I swear, I will kill her for hurting you."

He knew it still wasn't too late, a soft glow in his heart told him she was still alive, that there was still hope of finding her, and he knew she felt it too.

* * *

**THE **three of them emerged from the tent, all of them gloomy and down-spirited. None of them was in the mood for Iroh's ignorant cheerfulness.

"Why the sad faces? Are you really not looking forward to my cooking that much?" he laughed heartily but stopped when he saw none of them smile back.

"You know, while I was in the forest one day, I came upon one of the most beautiful flowers I have ever beheld! It had soft orange petals, a bright red center. The leaves came up around it in the loveliest way!"

"You mean a dragon's breath? There are plenty of those growing everywhere," said Sokka.

"Yes, but this one was blooming during the winter. I was quite surprised and delighted to see it. Any flower could bloom in the spring, but it takes will, strength, and courage to rise during the coldest time of the year," he studied each of their faces and smiled. "Indeed, it is a very rare and beautiful flower which chooses to bloom in adversity, and bring hope to those who have lost it, that spring is just around the bend," he finished with a twinkle in his eye as if he knew everything that had happened last night.

Sokka and Aang smiled slightly and even the corners of Toph's mouth turned upward.

"Now that you are done listening to the ramblings of an old man, does any one want breakfast? I made juk! And Sokka! It is so wonderful to see you safe and sound!"

* * *

**ZUKO **stopped. "Do you guys smell something?" they turned up their noses to the air and they each detected a delicious aroma up ahead. Zuko smiled, "I know that smell."

He continued on in the direction of the smell followed by Katara, Yisu, and Jet brought up the rear.

* * *

**"UNCLE!"** They all turned in the direction of the voice and saw Zuko, Katara, a strange girl and Jet emerge from the forest.

"Zuko!"

"Sokka!"

"Katara!"

"Aang!"

"Katara!"

"Toph!"

"Sugar Queen!"

The next few minutes were filled with cries of surprise and joy as the group was finally reunited completely.

Jet and Yisu stood off to the side watching the joyous reunion of the friends.

"So... what'd you think they'll say about me joining the group?" Yisu asked Jet nervously.

"I dunno. I'm not even in the group," he replied.

"But aren't you their friend?" she asked.

"I wouldn't use 'friend' exactly."

"Why not?"

He remembered her vow to kill whoever it was that destroyed her village. "It's complicated."

She dropped the matter and turned her attention back to the happy group. "It kinda makes you want to hug someone huh?" she looked at him with an innocent smile and a mischievous look in her eye.

He rolled his eyes and sighed. "Okay fine." he opened his arms to her but she stood transfixed.

"I don't want to hug you if you think your doing me a favor," she crossed her arms.

He huffed. "I'm not doing you a favor Yisu, I _want_ to hug you."

She grinned and jumped into his arms.

* * *

**"JET?"** it was more of a command than a question. Jet looked up and saw Aang glaring at him angrily. "What were you guys thinking?! Don't you remember what he did to that town?! If Sokka hadn't been there all those innocent people could've died!"

"Aang calm down! It's okay he's different now!" said Katara touching his arm. He pulled away from her angrily.

"How do you know? Did you make out with _him_ too?" he snarled fiercely.

Katara backed away wide-eyed.

"You thought I didn't know what happened on the beach that day? How many other guys have you kissed Katara? Huh? That's how you get everything isn't it?! You pull them into your trap and toy with their emotions them you ignore them! You don't care who you hurt do you?!"

Tears welled up in her eyes. "You don't mean that," she said. "You know I care Aang."

"You pretend to care. You only care about yourself and you own feelings! As long as Katara's happy it doesn't matter how everybody else feels does it? Does it?!" he demanded approaching her dangerously.

The tears poured out of her eyes and Sokka grabbed Aang and knocked him angrily to the ground. "Don't you ever in your life talk to my sister like that! EVER!"

Katara trembled helplessly and fell backwards. "You don't mean that," she whispered.

Aang pushed Sokka away from him. "Get off of me!"

He stood up and straightened his clothes. Everyone in the camp watched him. The truth finally came out, Aang's heart was broken and it was Katara who'd broken it.

"I do care Aang."

"No you don't. I'm not going to fall for your tears. I know their fake," he shook angrily and his tattoos began to glow.

"Aang! You don't know what you're talking about!" Toph yelled coming to stand next to him. She put her hand on his shoulder. He flinched but she held on so that he didn't push her hand away.

For one still moment all that was heard was Aang's breathing and Katara's weeping. Sokka moved and put his arms around her. Zuko glared at Aang loathingly and Aang watched Katara.

Suddenly, in one quick motion, Aang pulled a dagger from is belt and threw it at Jet. Jet reacted faster than he would have before and a water shield was up instantly in front of him and the dagger bounced off harmlessly.

Aang turned to Katara. "You just can't help but protect the scum bags can't you?" he turned and looked at Zuko. Toph whipped him around and punched him in the face knocking him unconscious. He fell into her arms and she carried him to Appa.

"Sokka, help me get him into Appa's saddle," she said.

"Where are you going?" Sokka asked pulling the young airbender into the saddle.

"Away from here. He's unstable now, I'm gonna talk to him."

"You can't see," he protested.

"I know that. But Appa can." She climbed into the saddle and onto Appa's head. She grabbed the reins, "Yip yip Appa!"

Appa groaned then rose up into the sky. "Be careful Toph!" Sokka yelled after her.

"I will! I'll be back before sundown!" and they were gone.

Zuko took Sokka's place by Katara. "C'mon," he said to her, "I think I can hear a spring this way."

He helped her up and with a nod from Sokka, he guided her away from the group and she followed with her face in her hands and her shoulders trembling.

The remaining four stood for a moment longer then Sokka looked at Jet. "That wasn't Katara who made that shield." his eyes darted from Jet to Yisu.

Jet sighed and ran his fingers through his unruly brown hair. "I'll tell you guys when Katara and Zuko get back."

* * *

**WHEN **they arrived at the spring Katara fell forward on her hands into the water and bathed her face and neck. She scrubbed herself so hard her skin turned red and Zuko caught her hands to make her stop.

She twisted her hands out of his grasp and plunged then back into the water. He grabbed her around the waist and lifted her up. She twisted around angrily and tried to get away from him but he held her fast.

"Katara," he said gently. She hit his chest with her fists uselessly.

"Let me go! Let me go!" she screamed. Her wet hair flew around her whipping his face. He wrapped one arm around her and held her head to his chest with his other hand.

"Let me go!" she sobbed into his chest. "Let me go!" he held her tightly and she eventually stopped struggling and receded to crying into his chest. "He doesn't mean that! He doesn't mean it!"

He held her and rocked her like a babe and he shushed her. "It's okay, he didn't mean it. He was just angry at seeing Jet. He didn't mean it."

"He didn't mean it!" she continued to sob and he stroked her hair.

"No he didn't."

"He didn't!"

"He didn't."

* * *

**THE **first thing he knew, he had a horrible headache.

"So you're awake." a smug voice filled his ears and he felt himself being picked up and shook. "You're an idiot." He opened his eyes and saw Toph holding him up.

"What?" she put him down so that he stood on his own then slapped him across the face. "OW!"

"You deserve it! How could you do that to Katara?" she slapped him on the other side of his face.

"What?" he asked again.

"Oh! You don't remember! Let me help you!" she stomped up the earth underneath him throwing him up into the air then letting him fall back down to the ground hard.

"You think she meant to hurt you? How could you be so stupid!" she threw a block of earth at him and he jumped away from it just in time.

"I- I was-,"

"What? Wasn't thinking? Apparently! The first few minutes we're back together and you just have to go and make her cry!" she threw another block of earth at him knocking him to the ground and he stayed there sobbing.

She glared at him even though she couldn't see.

"I don't know what I was thinking. I was just so hurt-,"

"Shut up Aang. I'm sick of all your lame excuses. You hurt her! You broke her heart!" Toph yelled.

"She broke mine! Now she knows how it feels!" he turned away from her and hugged his knees to his chest.

"So that's what this is about? Revenge? Wow Aang, I would've expected more from the Avatar," Toph said to his back.

"I'm just a kid! I'm only thirteen! I haven't been able to grow up like all the other kids and learn how to deal with all these things! I don't- I didn't- I don't know- I- I don't know!" He put his face in his knees and tears continued to fall from his eyes. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry Toph! I hurt everyone! I hurt Katara, I hurt you, I hurt Giatso, I hurt the world! I'm the selfish one not Katara! This is all my fault I'm sorry!" He hugged himself and rocked back and forth. "I'm so sorry!"

Toph felt her heart soften and she approached him and wrapped her arms around him. "Everything will be okay," she said gently.

"I'm sorry!" he repeated over and over again.

"I know you are Aang," she held him. "It's okay, everything will be better soon don't worry."

"How do you know?" he asked looking at her through his tears.

She smiled. "The world doesn't stop when one bad thing happens. It keeps spinning and we have to make the best of it. Like what Iroh said, we have to be like the flower that blooms in the winter."

He sniffed and nodded. "Everything will get better Aang. It always does."

* * *

**"SOKKA?"**

Sokka turned and met Yisu's gaze.

"Yes?"

"You look very familiar; have we met before?" she asked studying his face as if trying to dig up a long buried memory.

"Well, I don't think I've ever seen you before," said Sokka studying her face as well.

Yisu turned to Jet. "What town was he talking about?"

Jet looked away ashamedly.

Yisu's eyes widened and glistened with tears. "It can't be," she whispered.

"I'm sorry Yisu," was all he could say.

"Look at me!" she commanded.

He turned and faced her obediently and she slapped him hard across the face.

"You destroyed my town! You could've killed all those people! Mothers and fathers and children! How could you?" the tears fell from her eyes down her cheeks and Jet couldn't bear her sadness.

"Yisu, try to understand-," he started but Yisu stopped him.

"You're a murderer Jet! You're sick and I trusted you!"

There were those words again. "It was wrong," was all he could say.

Sokka looked on and in his mind he slowly pieced together the missing parts of the puzzle. "It was your town..." he remembered now, vaguely seeing her face in the crowd of people evacuating the town.

"Yes it was my town," she said not taking her eyes off Jet. "No wonder he didn't want you joining the group. You're dirty, I can't believe I ever fell for you." she turned and stalked off into the woods leaving Jet sitting on the log staring at a dieing fire.

"You're not gonna go after her?" Sokka asked raising an eyebrow.

"What would I say? Everything she called me is what I am! I'm a murderer Sokka!" he threw a stick into the fire and squeezed his eyes shut.

"No you're not Jet. You helped us escape, if it weren't for you we would probably still be prisoners."

"It was Katara that got you guys away from there."

"It was you who held them off."

"One good deed can't reverse all the bad ones I've committed."

"Jet, how do you expect her to forgive you if you can't forgive yourself?" Jet looked at him. "You've changed Jet. I know you have, Katara knows you have; let her know you changed too."

* * *

**SHE **didn't know where she was going, she just wanted to get as far away from him as possible, then she heard his voice behind her. She groaned angrily and started to run.

He saw her just up ahead but then she disappeared through the trees. He continued to follow the sound of her footsteps turning left and right and left again. Suddenly he realized he'd lost her. He looked down and all he saw was print free mud. "How did she do that? Ooof!" She ran into his back knocking them both to the ground. "We need to talk," he said trying to get up but she forced him down and sat on his chest.

"No," she grabbed a dagger from his belt and held it under his chin. "Give me one good reason why," she hissed dangerously.

"I'm not a murderer Yisu," he said. She pushed the dagger into his neck drawing blood.

"You tried to kill me. You tried to kill my grandmother and my friends! From what I know you are a murderer!" she raised the dagger up to plunge it into his neck but Jet caught her hand before it made contact with his skin.

"Then you can't know much!" She struggled to push the dagger further but he held her wrist fast and his other hand held her dagger free one down to her side. She gasped angrily but she couldn't do anything.

"I was trying to get rid of all the Fire Nation! I hate the fire nation Yisu!"

"I hate them too! You don't see me going around destroying villages and killing innocent people!" She kept trying to force the dagger down but Jet rolled on his side so that he sat on her and he twisted the dagger out of her hand.

"The Fire Nation killed my parents! They destroyed my village and we didn't do anything to them! I saw them Yisu! I saw them kill my mother and father! They didn't care that I was just a child they just killed them! I HATE the Fire Nation!" he yelled this into her face and he felt tears pouring out of his eyes. "I hate them Yisu! They made me do so many horrible things! Look what they've turned me into! I almost killed you out of my hate for them and I am so sorry!"

Yisu didn't know what to say. She wanted to hate him and yell and scream at him but after this confession she was at a loss of words. He let her up and she sat next to him as he cried into his knees.

"Hey," she said gently. She turned his face towards hers and wiped his tears with her thumbs. "It's really weird seeing you cry Jet." he smiled through his tears and she hugged him.

"Will you forgive me Yisu?" he whispered into her ear. She pulled out of the embrace and smiled at his tear streaked face.

She put her hand on his cheek and brought his face to hers and pressed her lips to his.

When she pulled away his eyes were still closed and she kissed his forehead. "You can take that as a maybe."

He opened his eyes and saw her smiling at him and he knew he was forgiven. He took her face in his hand and kissed her, a warm happiness arose between them and neither of them was sure they'd ever experienced a kiss quite like this one.

* * *

**KATARA **had fallen asleep in his arms and he had no desire to wake her. He held her close to him and stroked her hair like he had the night before. Then he heard Sokka calling her name. He looked up when he saw him coming and put his finger to his lips. Sokka sat down beside him.

"How is she?" he asked pushing a few strands of Katara's hair out of her face.

"She was really upset," Zuko said quietly.

"I'm going to kill Aang for talking to her like that," Sokka growled between his teeth.

"You shouldn't do that. Unless of course you want to fight Ozai yourself," Zuko replied.

"He had no right-,"

"I know. I know."

They sat in silence for the next few moments watching Katara sleep soundlessly.

* * *

**DURING **all that had occurred in the past hour or so, Iroh stood by Appa with no desire to return to the years of teenage drama. Let them settle things by themselves. He ate his porridge by Appa's head and watched the yelling, the screaming and the crying. Then Toph took Appa and Iroh stood away at the edge of the clearing. Soon, only Sokka was left and he must have forgotten that Iroh was there for he left shortly after Jet went off after the girl.

When the camp was empty, the old man set to work cleaning up and packing, sure that everyone would return in higher spirits than when they had stomped of.

As he was cleaning, Iroh thought about the way Sokka had let Zuko take Katara away like that. He smiled and remembered how flustered his nephew had been when he returned from the beach. _I think I know what has happened on the beach. And what has happened while they were captured. _He thought to himself. _Strange though; Zuko must have done something extraordinary to have gained the approval of such a protective brother as Sokka._

* * *

**"ARE **you ready to go back?" Toph asked after a while.

Aang sighed. "We'll have to sooner of later." They got up and started towards Appa but Toph stopped him.

"Aang," she said shyly.

"Yeah Toph?" he stopped and looked back at her. She came and stood before him.

"I have to tell you something," she said shifting her feet.

"What's on your mind?"

She sighed. "I just-," she stopped, she didn't know what to say.

Aang smiled. "I know."

She lifted her face to his. "You do?" she whispered.

"Yeah. I'm sorry. It's just, I was so in love with Katara, I just- I didn't-,"

She put her finger over his lips. "I know," and she kissed him.

Suddenly, Katara's face vanished from his mind, and there was Toph's. It's been there all along, but he'd been foolish and ignored it aiming for a goal that was not meant to be reached by him. Toph was the one. Not Katara. He put his hand on her cheek and kissed her back. Even the kiss with Katara in the Cave on Two Lovers was nothing compared to this.

When they finally pulled away, all either of them could do was smile and blush. "We should be getting back now," said Toph.

"Yeah, we should," Aang agreed. He took her hand and they mounted Appa and took off back to the others.

* * *

**Whew! Okay guys that was a very long chapter! I was actually gonna end it after Toph comforting Aang, but then I realized I might not be able to write another chapter next week so I continued it and I hope everyone liked it! REVIEW please! **

**Oh! And my friend **murciegala** posted her first fic a few days ago and I think you guys should read it cuz it's pretty good and I'm sure a few nice reviews would make her feel very happy! :) **

**But of course you're going to review my story first right? ;) **


	17. Apologies

**IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT! YOU MUST READ THIS BEFORE CONTINUING ON WITH THE STORY!!**

**Okay good, now that I have your attention, I need help, should I continue this story, or should I end it? Track season started and I only have Sundays off of practice so I might not be able to update as much as I want to. And, I've been hit with a major case of teenage syndrome, meaning I am tired 23/7. The one hour that I'm not tired I'm sleeping. So yeah, not gonna work very well. **

* * *

**WHEN **they returned to camp, the sun was in the middle of the sky and Iroh had started packing everyone's belongings along with Sokka's help and the camp was nearly empty. Yisu and Jet emerged from the woods smiling softly as if sharing some special secret. Appa landed heavily with a loud groan and Aang and Toph slide down to the ground.

"You ready?" Toph asked grasping his hand.

Aang laced his fingers into hers and squeezed her hand. "As ready as I'll ever be."

Toph chuckled. "The way you're talking it's like you're about to face the firelord."

Aang shrugged. "If I had to choose between the two at the moment I'd choose Ozai."

Sokka looked up from packing his bag and made eye contact with Aang. The younger boy smiled awkwardly as if trying to charm an ogre but Sokka's expression was cold as ice and he turned back to his pack.

"That went well," he murmured to Toph.

"Just give it time," and she squeezed his hand. They decided to avoid Sokka and move to the side of the camp where Yisu and Jet were gathering the food together.

"Hey," Aang said to Jet hopefully. Jet looked up at him.

"Hey," he answered without feeling then got back to putting the nuts into the basket.

"About the whole- I didn't- I mean I-," Aang started awkwardly.

"It's fine," Jet said without looking up.

"No it's not. I shouldn't've tried to k- I mean... I was so upset I just-,"

"I said it's fine," he slung the basket over his shoulder on a strap and started towards Appa. Yisu looked after him then looked at Aang and shrugged, not sure of what to say.

"This is not going very well," Toph noted shuffling her feet.

"What do you expect I was big fat jerk to everyone," Aang said miserably.

"Don't start crying again dude, we'll figure this out just be patient," said Toph. "Now help me with these tents." The two of them left Yisu and went to stomp the tents back into the ground. Yisu moved quickly back to Jet's side.

* * *

**"I'M **not liking all this tension," Yisu whispered to Jet as he hoisted the basket of food into Appa's saddle.

"Not much I can do about it," Jet said bluntly.

"You can try listening to him," Yisu suggested.

"_Darling_," he emphasized looking at her, "Did you or did you not see him throw that dagger at me?"

"_Sweatheart!_" she said with just as much emphasis. "He was upset!" she hissed taking his hand into hers.

"He threw a dagger at me!"

"And you guys have never fought before?"

"That was different!"

"No it wasn't! Jet!" she put her hand on his cheek and made him look at her. "He's at least trying to apologize. You can't go on forever with this squabble between the two of you." she looked at him pleadingly. "Go talk to him."

Jet looked at her then took her hand from his face and kissed it. "Okay, I'll talk to him."

"Now," she said expectantly.

He kissed her lips. "To squash the squabble. For you." he started towards Aang.

"Not for me Jet! For yourself and for him!" she said catching his arm.

He nodded then took his arm out of her grasp. "For myself and for him then."

"Jet you sound like you're doing me a favor," she crossed her arms and looked at him with her head tilted slightly to the side.

Jet rolled his eyes then looked back at her. "I _want_ to listen to him Yisu," he said grinning.

"Then go!"

* * *

"UH!!" Aang stomped the last wall back into the ground then dusted his hands together.

"Good job Twinkle Toes. You could probably even beat me in a duel by now," Toph said grinning in his direction.

"You're just saying that to make me feel better," the boy said smoothing the dirt.

Toph shrugged. "Partly... is it working?"

"Aang?" before he could answer Jet came from behind him.

"Yeah?" his voice quivered slightly with the faintest glimmer of hope.

"What's in the past should be left in the past. Truce?" he offered his arm and Aang stared at it flabbergast.

"Y-Yeah! Yeah truce!" they slide arms and bumped fists and shared a smile. Those few words exchanged between them and that one little hand clasp and smile seemed to melt a cement and iron wall of hate and anger towards one another. Now they could start all over as new friends. "Great! So we're friends now?" Aang's boyish eagerness came back to him piece by piece and Jet saw that happy and joyous little boy he had first met that day in the woods.

He chuckled. "Yeah, we're friends."

Aang looked happy enough to just pee his pants.

* * *

**ZUKO'S **head rested in Katara's hair, each breath he took inhaled her fresh clean crystal like scent sending him dreams of a cool, clear, peace.

Her eyes fluttered open and she realized slowly where she was. Zuko had fallen asleep while he'd been holding her and the steady rise and fall of his warm chest soothed her somewhat. She didn't want to leave his arms and return to where she knew she would have to face Aang.

How could he be so insensitive? The group had finally been reunited after all those weeks and he'd pretty much called her a whore after barely five minutes! Her! Katara! She'd always been there for him! Always cared about him and worried about him like a sister would her baby brother! She loved him like a second brother how could he hurt her like that?! She buried her face deeper into the crook of Zuko's arm. Her eyes hurt from crying and she was sure they were swollen.

"Katara? You awake?"

Drat. She'd forgotten what a light sleeper he was. He sat up and she pushed herself up so that she sat on his stomach and looked down at him. Each of her hands rested on his shoulders. She smiled and he smiled back and stroked her hair, something he seemed to like to do.

His hand traveled down to her face and he cupped her chin. "Are you okay?" he asked, his voice was full of concern.

She leaned forward and kissed him on the corner of his mouth. "I'm fine. Thank you."

He wound his fingers in her loose brown hair. "I'm always gonna be here for you." He put his hand on the small of her back and pulled her down to him kissing her.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and he wrapped his around her waist in a loving embrace. "I know," she said into his ear.

They lay together for the next few moments in silence soaking in the precious moments of being alone.

"We need to go back now." Zuko said after a while.

Katara sighed. "I don't want to," she murmured turning to bury her face back into his shoulder.

"Better sooner than later," he said nudging her.

"I choose later," she said into his sleeve.

He smiled. "You're acting like a little kid."

"Don't call me a little kid! He started it!" came her muffled voice and she hit his chest without really hurting him.

"Katara, come on, I'll be right next to you I promise."

She looked up at him with inquiring eyes. "Promise?" she offered her pinky and he took it in his.

"Promise. Now let's go." he started to get up.

"I still don't want to," she said staying on the ground.

"Don't make me carry you." he warned.

She grinned up at him and he looked at her.

"I'm not carrying you Katara, you are gonna get up by yourself and walk back to the camp on your own two feet! Katara I mean it!"

She groaned. "Fine. Gimme five more minutes."

"Kataraaaaaa!" he wined.

"Now who sounds like a child?"

"Katara!"

"Zuko!"

"Katara."

"Zuko."

"You know what?" he bent down and picked her up standing her on her feet. She wobbled and fell forward but her caught her and steadied her. "Ready?"

"I'm telling you Zuko," she said dusting herself off and fixing her hair. "Five more minutes and I would've been able to stand up by myself."

* * *

**"SUGAR **Queen and Scar Face are coming," Toph warned. They all sat around the once-was camp fire in pairs; Toph/Aang, Yisu/Jet, and Iroh with Sokka.

"Aw man, I'm really in for it." Aang fell forward over his knees and hung there.

"You're gonna hafta face her Aang, whether you like it or not," said Toph.

"I don't like it. Toph, why didn't you stop me from saying all those things to her?"

"I punched you in the face."

"You should've punched me earlier. Or beat me with a stick. Or pummeled me with a mammothbear's tusk. Or punched me _and_ beat me with a stick _and_ pummeled me with a mammothbear's tusk."

At that moment, they heard Zuko's and Katara's footsteps approaching and the duo emerged from the trees.

"Toph look at her she's been crying and it's all my fault!" Aang said gultily. The previous happiness from making a truce with Jet vanished when he saw Katara's face.

"You made this mess now go clean it up man!" Toph hissed. Katara looked up and saw him looking back at her; the look she wore was very much like the one Sokka had given him when he and Toph had returned. Sokka's eyes darted from one face to the other.

"Get uuup." Toph urged him prodding him up. "Now go!" She shoved him in Katara's direction and he unwillingly walked towards her.

"Hey," he said awkwardly scratching the back of his head.

Katara studied him up and down, her expression stone cold and she didn't answer.

"Look Katara I'm sorry. I shouldn't've said all those things to you," he apologized searching her face for the former Katara he remembered falling in love with. But her face held no sympathy and not even the faintest trace of emotion.

"Sure," she pushed passed him.

"Katara please I-," he started but she raised a hand and turned around to face him.

"It's fine. We better go now. Not all of us can fit on Appa so me Jet, Zuko and Mai will travel on foot while you, Toph, Iroh, and Sokka will ride on Appa. I'ts fine Aang just drop it," she added when he opened his mouth again. She walked back to the camp and went to talk with Sokka leaving Aang with Zuko.

The younger boy looked up at the young man and frowned. "What did you say to her?"

"Nothing," Zuko replied coolly.

"You know you said something. You don't want her to forgive me do you? You first help your sister to kill me and now you're taking everything I care about away from me! Why don't you just go back to where you came from we don't want you here!" the poor boy was getting all worked up again and Katara returned to the pair but Zuko raised his hand to stop her from interfering.

"I did nothing _Avatar_," he said in a soft menacing voice. "As I recall, _you_ were the one who called her a whore, you are the one who made her cry. It doesn't matter how many daggers you throw at me, how many blasts of air you shoot at me, or how many bad names you call me, it's not going to remove the blame from your shoulders so I suggest you try and make the best of it." he finished looked at Aang from behind long black hair. Katara looked at him in wonder, impressed on how well he handled Aang's outburst.

Aang looked at him then at Katara, then down at his feet ashamedly. "I'm a horrible Avatar," he said in so soft a voice they would have thought they imagined it if they had not seen his lips move.

Katara felt the overwhelming desire to hug him and to comfort him like she used to but refrained from doing so. This mess he had to get out of himself, she could not help him.

He sniffed and sighed deeply then bowed to Zuko and then to Katara. "I'm sorry I offended you. There is no excuse for all the words I've said to you Katara, and no matter how much I want to I can't turn back time and change it. I hope some day you will come to forgive me," then he turned to Zuko. "I'm sorry. I was jealous of you. It's not an excuse, it's a confession. The truth is, I've been in love with Katara since the day I woke up in her arms. But now I know, I'm not the one her heart belongs to," he stood back and looked at then both. "I saw it when you walked into camp that day on the beach; you couldn't stop blushing Katara! I knew at that moment everything that happened when you guys met. When I saw you together again I hated you Zuko. And I was mad at you too Katara. My heart was broken and I couldn't think so I ended up hurting you."

He looked at their faces, Zuko's was expressionless but Katara's had a look of astonishment mixed with confirmation; she'd known or at least suspected.

Toph was watching Aang proudly. "I hope you both can forgive me some day." He bowed to them again then turned back to the camp.

The two watched him go back next to Toph then the two of them looked at each other, laced fingers together then joined the group.

* * *

**REVIEW! I forgot how many I wanted... hey, how about you people who I've never heard from but know are reading review?? That'd be nice ya know? :) **


	18. Thoughts

**HEY HEY HEY!! Thank you all so much for the lovely reviews and the understanding about my Track schedule! Anyways, it's SPRING BREAK NOW!! I can possibly get a few chapters in between practices and stuff, so that's a good thing! Well, here's the next chapter!**

* * *

**"THE **eclipse is next week, we'll get to Kioshi Island in about two days, from there we'll move on to Paso Cove."_(Um... yeah, I don't know the manes of everywhere so I just made up some names:)_ Aang had a map spread out on the saddle before him; he, Toph, Iroh, and Sokka were flying while the rest of them were on the ground riding the ostrich horses they bought from a town near by. Sokka sat at Appa's head guiding the bison and Toph sat in the back with Aang pondering over the map. Iroh snored away on the other side of the saddle.

"Then we'll meet up with Hakoda and the rest of the troops. This time next week," he rolled the map up and leaned against Appa's saddle and sighed. "I'll be in the biggest fight of my life. And I may not even come out of it alive."

Toph kissed his cheek. "You're no match for Ozai, Aang. And you have me to back you up." Aang shook his head. "This is something I have to do alone. It's my destiny."

"You can change destiny Aang."

"No you can't. That's why it's called _destiny_."

"Do you really believe you have to face Ozai alone?" the boy nodded. "Why? And don't say destiny."

Aang scratched his head. He hated having hair. "Fate?"

Toph punched his shoulder. "I don't care what you say Aang, if you need me, I'm going to be there."

* * *

_**AANG **sure's got a way with words. _Sokka sat at Appa's head and pondered over what had occurred in the last hour. _So in the village with Aunt Wu... he'd been talking about Katara, not Mang. The nerve of that boy! Wants to hook up with my baby sister so he comes to _me_ for advice?? He's let much too much air in his head. _

He chuckled._ He came to me. Then again I am pretty smooth with the ladies._ He straightened up automatically smiling to himself._ I won over Yue, the weird bendy girl, Sukki... Sukki._ His shoulders fell and his smile vanished. He hoped against hope that his dream had not been true. _I swear Azula, if you touched a hair on her head..._He shook angrily and forced himself not to think about it. He was a water tribe warrior; he had to control his emotions so nothing could move him. Still, one single tear found its way of the corner of his eye. He didn't bother brushing it away.

* * *

**THE **ostrich horses trotted along through the trees. Soon they would come to the coast and meet up with the water tribe warriors, and sail to Kioshi Island. From the Island, to Paso Cove, then from there, everyone will sail to the Fire Nation.

Back to the Fire Nation. He never thought that he would return to his home on the Avatar's side. He thought he'd have the Avatar and deliver him to his father, and have his honor restored to him finally. _Maybe..._ No. I'm not going to fall for it again. It's false honor just like Katara said. But he'd wanted it _so_ bad for _so_ long! He wanted his father to love him. He wanted a family, a real family, like they were a long time ago. But his father's heart was stone. He'd scarred his own son and banished and disowned him. _No, Ozai has to go down. I'm on the Avatar's side now. I _will_ help him restore peace and balance to the world_.

He looked at Katara and she smiled at him. He smiled back then faced forward again. She was so beautiful to him, if he looked at her too long he was sure he would never want to look at anything else ever again. _Then, when the Avatar has won, and I have the throne, I will make you my fire lady. And we'll unite the water tribes with the fire nation, and we'll all be one. That's what we'll do Katara. Because I love you._

* * *

**THE **ride was bumpy and long and she hated it. Stupid ostrich-horses! She held on tightly to the reins. Next week. It seemed like just yesterday she and Sokka had found Aang in that iceberg! Now they were on their way to fight the Fire Lord. Aang... she'd always suspected it, but never wanted to say it. She'd liked him too. But something in her heart had told her he was not the one. She looked up and saw Zuko smiling at her again. _Oh Zuko. _She wanted to kiss him and to be folded in his arms. He made her feel so safe. _What if he's fooled again? What will I do? I can't suffer another heart break; I'm not strong enough. _She turned her gaze away from him slightly troubled. _What if Azula gets to him again? He said he's changed but has he really? _She bit her lip and thought. _No, he's had a chance to betray us so many times. He won't. He can't. Because I love him._

* * *

_**THOSE **two really are a very nice couple_. Iroh feigned sleep, across the saddle from Toph and Aang. _So the boy has been in love with Katara... I knew it. But Toph is the one for him. I am glad he finally found that out. They are opposites like Katara and Zuko. Yin and Yang, they must learn to live together in harmony. Yin and Yang... the nations must learn to live together in peace as well. I hope my nephew does not forget it._ He sighed deeply. _ I hope he does not forget it._ And he fell into a real dreamless sleep.

* * *

_**KIM **Lian, I need to talk to you_. He still hasn't told them about his waterbending ability. When should he expose it and who should he expose it to? _She said I would know when the time was right. Still, I want to talk to her before we go to the Fire Nation._ The ostrich-horse trotted along. They would reach the ships soon.

_I wonder where my Freedom Fighters are?_ He thought suddenly. An ache in his heart appeared when he didn't realize he had it. He missed his fighters. they'd been a family, always there for each other, watching each others backs. They'd fallen apart the day he destroyed to dam and drowned that town. Not all of them agreed with him and all of them were mad that he'd deceived them. He was their leader! How could he lie to them like that? It'd been Yisu's town. If Sokka hadn't evacuated the town, he'd have never met her and it would've been his own fault. He was suddenly conscious of Yisu's arms wrapped tightly around his midsection and her body pressed close against his back. He was _so_ incredibly lucky. And _so_ thankful. _Everything happens for a reason. Yisu, you make me want to change for good, you make me want to be a better person than I've ever been in my life._

* * *

**THE **steady rhythm of the ostrich-horse's feet on the ground, and the warmth radiating off of Jet onto her face made Yisu drowsy. She closed her eyes. _I wonder what I'm going to do. I told him I'd go with him only to the next Earth Kingdom town, now that we're together, does that change anything? _Her hold on him tightened. She didn't want to let him go. She didn't want to leave him.

"Yisu? You okay back there? Should I slow down?" She smiled and squeezed him slightly.

"I'm okay Jet." _I think I love you Jet._

* * *

**"PUH!** Ugh... What do they think we are animals?" She threw the black bread against the wall then tightened the tie around her middle to food her stomach into thinking it was full.

"Well you're certainly not worth me going through the trouble of making my chefs prepare you a gourmet meal," a snotty and icky voice drifted through the bars. She heard a loud creak as the cell door opened and someone stepped in.

"What do you want Azula?"

"Nothing much. Just some information about the invasion your stupid little boyfriend is leading next week." Azula studied her long nails closely and scratched a dirty speck of dirt away from her pinky finger.

"Sokka's not stupid! And what makes you think I'll tell you anything?"

The princess sighed boredly. "Because if you don't-" she made a motion to someone behind her and a guard entered with one of the captured Kioshi warriors. "I'll kill her."

For the first time since being captured Sukki expressed real fear. "Don't tell that bitch anything Sukki!" She yelled. The guard smacked her head and the woman warrior spat on him. The guard pulled a dagger from his belt and held it to her throat.

"No! Don't hurt her! I don't know anything about the invasion I didn't even know Sokka was planning it!" Azula motioned and the guard kicked the warrior hard behind her knees. "No! Stop it!"

"Then tell me everything," Azula ordered.

"I don't know anything!" Motion. The guard pushed the warrior against the wall and punched her in the stomach. She fell to her knees coughing up blood. Sukki screamed and tears filled her eyes and streamed down her face.

"Why are you allowing this? What kind of leader are you to let your own warrior suffer for just a bit of information?" The princess looked at her through heavy eyelashes.

"I swear I don't know anything!"

"You're lying to me Kioshi Warrior!" She motioned again and the guard slid the dagger up into the girl's rib cage.

"NO!" Sukki screamed and tried to run to her crumpled body but the chains holding her wrists held her back.

Azula looked at the body with indifference. "Oh well. One less to worry about." She turned and left the cell. "Clean that mess up."

Sukki stared in horror at the body and the girl lifted her head up. She looked at Sukki and smiled weakly. "Live with the heart of a Kioshi Warrior."

Sukki blinked the tears out of her eyes. "Die with the honor of a Kioshi Warrior." The warrior's head fell and the guard picked her up and took her out of the cell.

Sukki bit her lip in anger. She knew the girl would be denied a proper burial.

_Live with the heart of a Kioshi Warrior._ What is in the heart of a Kioshi Warrior? Strength. Courage. Discipline. If she was going to survive, she would need all three of these. Then she remembered what Azula said. The invasion... Sokka's coming. She would be ready. She was a Kioshi Warrior, nothing would phase her, she filled her heart with all the strength, courage, and discipline of Avatar Kioshi. She closed her eyes and felt the woman avatar's presence fill her. When she opened her eyes she felt renewed and stronger. _I'll be ready._

Then, the cell door opened again and Sukki tensed. "Who is?"

"Please be silent. I'm here to help you." The girl looked up and saw a hooded and cloaked figure. The intruder lifted her hood revealing a beautiful pale face. She bent down and worked on the locks around Sukki's wrists.

She rubbed her wrists once they were free. "Why are you helping me/"

"I am helping you because I believe in balance between the nations. I heard my son is coming; he is bringing an army of warriors and benders alike to this island. This time next week, the Avatar will finally face the Fire Lord, and the fate of the world will be decided." The woman's eyes were downcast and she bowed to Sukki.

"Who are you?"

"I am Ursa."

* * *

**There's the next chapter! I hope you all liked it! REVIEW PLEASE!**


	19. Kioshi Island

** Thanks to _I-Love-Akatsuki_ I now have 200 freaking reviews! OMG! (takes a moment to fan herself and breath.) Thank you everyone who's ever reviewed my story! I love you all so much I wish I could pat all of your heads! ...Just pretend I did. :) On with the story! **

* * *

"**HERE** we are! Kioshi Island!" The boat docked and the four jumped down onto land and walked around to rid themselves of ship legs. From over head, Appa descended and the rest of the gang hopped down to the beach. The citizens of the town hurried towards them cheering excitedly and they were led to the other warriors.

* * *

"**KATARA **can I talk to you for a minute please?"

She looked up from unloading her things from her pack and saw Jet standing in the doorway of the room she , Toph, and Yisu were using.

She looked at him surprised. "Sure Jet, what's on your mind?"

He shuffled his feet then beckoned her outside. "Come down to the beach with me."

He left and Katara followed him. Puzzled at his strange behavior, Katara followed him outside and down to where the waves met the sand.

When they reached it he stopped then took something out of his pocket. "Here, I forgot to give it to you earlier." She stretched her hand out and he dropped something into her palm. It was Lian's zodiac bracelet.

She looked up at him with surprise and he met her gaze. "She wanted you to have it. She said you would know what to do with it."

She nodded and slipped the bracelet onto her wrist. "Thanks Jet. But this isn't why you wanted to talk to me is it?"

He looked out towards the water and her eyes remained on his face.

"No, it's not," he went to a small pudle in the sand and stirred the water with his finger. "When Lian gave me her life, she gave me something else as well."

He lifted his hand gently and water streamed up towards it. _No! It's not possible! Jet? A waterbender! _She watched in astonishment as he shaped the water into a ball then slowly streamed it back into the water.

When he finished, he looked up at her. "She said _you_ are the only waterbender alive more powerful than I am."

"Me?"

He nodded.

She sat down in the sand and ran her fingers through her hair. "What is this world coming to?" she asked more to herself than to him.

He plopped down next to her. "I'm sorry."

She shook her head. "Don't apologize Jet. I'm just a little overwhelmed is all." She sighed then looked at the sapphire ring on her finger. "So does this make me your master?"

He shrugged. "I guess so."

She nodded thoughtfully. "We have five days to the invasion, what do you know?"

"Just what I showed you. I was really freaked out with it at first so I didn't experiment much."

"I guess freaking out would be a normal reaction." Katara rested her chin in her knees and pondered some more. "Did you get to talk to her at all? Lian I mean?"

"She told me how to contact her in a letter... I did it once."

"How?"

Jet lifted his face to the sky. The sun was beginning to set, in a few minutes, it would touch the water.

"Like this," he stood up and entered the water.

* * *

**HE'D** been meaning to talk to Lian anyway, might as well show Katara how he did it. The huge fiery orb finally grazed the surface of the water and wondrous arrays of light and color swept across the horizon.

"Lian! I have to talk to you!" The waves started to churn around him and he saw a bright light from under the water come towards him. Then, Lian was there in all her powerful and beautiful splendor, floating in the air before him.

"You called me?" she said, her voice was strong and mystical, filling his entire being.

"The invasion is next week, and I barely know how to use my bending properly!"

"You will know what to do when the time comes." Her glowing eyes lifted from Jet and found Katara standing watching the scene lay out before her with awe. "Katara." she said, her voice was soft but Katara could still hear it as if she was standing right in front of her.

"Lian," she said wading into the water.

"Give my bracelet to Kana and Ugoda. They are together at the South Pole rebuilding. It will soon be a city as great and magnificent as that in the north. You and your family will be the first royal family in one hundred years." she dropped her chin slowly and looked deep into Katara's eyes. "You will survive tomorrow, but you will experience a pain you haven't felt for many years. Unfortunately, it is a wound that will never fully heal."

Katara's eyes widened in terror. "Is Sokka going to be killed?" she whispered though she knew Jet and Lian heard her. "Please tell me," she said louder.

Lian didn't answer. Tears started to stream from her eyes. "Lian! You have to tell me! What's going to happen to Sokka!?"

The ocean spirit touched Katara's cheek and looked at her with sad eyes. "Don't let regret destroy your present. It will only ruin your future." Then she began to fade and Katara reached for her desperately but her fingers grasped air.

"Lian! What's going to happen to Sokka!? Lian tell me!" The waves churned again and the light in the ocean grew dim. "Lian!" She started swimming out towards the light and Jet swam after her. "Lian! You have to tell me!"

"Katara stop! The unagi!" But Katara didn't heed him.

Then suddenly, out of the water popped the enormous head of the sea monster. Jet grabbed Katara around the waist and thrust her towards the beach, not knowing how in the world he managed to do that with his limited knowledge of waterbending. He looked back up at the looming green head as it opened its mouth and roared at him. It struck suddenly and lucky for Jet it missed and he caught on to one of the nostrils. He felt himself get lifted up out of the water then found he was staring into a wide open red eye and angry eye. The monster shook its head viciously and Jet was loosen off and thrown to the beach where he landed hard next to Katara. The unagi hissed at them one more time then dove back under the water.

Katara sat on the beach breathing heavily and looking at the ground with large and bewildered blue eyes.

"Katara-,"

"I'm going to lose someone I love next week," she looked at Jet, "Don't tell them." then she got up quickly and hurried back to the rows of small houses.

* * *

**THE **little town and the army camp were all silent with the blanket of night swept over them. But nobody slept. They tossed and turned restlessly in their beds and sleeping bags and tried every which way there was to sleep. All to no prevail, unrest had settled upon Kioshi Island.

In one home, a little baby awoke and began to cry, and no matter what it's mother did, it would not go back to sleep. Then the sound, a mysterious and beautiful sound, reached the ears of the babe and the mother. The eyes of the child grew heavy and it was soon fast asleep. Not long after, the sound lulled the mother to sleep as well. Then the mysterious music swept through the town entering every household putting every restless soul to sleep, then through the camp, sending the warriors into a dark dreamless realm.

Finally, when everyone was fast asleep, the music returned to its source, and Yisu, completely out of breath, finally went to sleep.

* * *

"**SUKKI!"**Sukki put a finger to her mouth then opened the cell door quickly, freeing the last of the Kioshi warriors.

"Come girls, we must be quick and silent otherwise the alarm will be raised," Ursa beckoned them to follow her down a long corridor, ten warriors followed behind. Sukki fell to the rear to make sure nobody got left behind.

Suddenly, up ahead, they hear an alarm and voices raised. "They know you've escaped! They must've found the empty cells! Quickly, this way!" Ursa hastened her pace, she knew none of them, having been starved and beaten, were in any shape to fight.

"Just around this bend!" She called behind her, but when they rounded the bend, they were met by a small group of soldiers. Ursa's hood went up instantly, then a dagger appeared in her hand and she dispatched the first surprised soldier.

"They're here!" One of the soldiers yelled and the sound of running feet reached their ears as they came closer.

"Sukki!" Ursa yelled, and she pulled out duo swords from somewhere in her robes and started using them with the skill and the grace of a master swordsman.

Sukki ran to the front and kicked a guard in the face who tried to grab her. "Yes?"

"The boat is just up that way; take your friends and go! Now!" Sukki hesitated only a moment then beckoned the other warriors fighting her way through.

When they finally reached the surface, she saw the boat anchored in the shadows. "C'mon girls, into the boat!" She counted off each of them and when she got to eight Ursa appeared.

"Let's go!" she jumped into the boat but warrior number nine did not appear.

"Where's Tiao?" one of the girls in the boat asked. Nobody answered and Sukki immediately reentered the underground prison.

"Sukki! No!" Ursa yelled after her but Sukki didn't listen. She would _not_ lose another warrior.

She silently evaded all of the soldiers that crossed her path until she heard Tiao's screams.

"Tiao!" she ran towards the scream and found Tiao attacked by three soldiers. "Hey!" she yelled. The soldiers turned around and she punched two of them in the face and the other she jump kicked him in the jaw. They all fell to the ground unconscious and she helped Tiao up. "Are you okay?" the girl nodded and they quickly made their way back towards the boat. When they were almost at the surface, more soldiers found them "Tiao go! Tell them to leave now!"

"What about you Sukki?" the girl demanded. "We won't just leave you!" the soldiers rounded the bend.

"Someone has to hold them off! Now go!" she pushed the girl through the opening and met the guards head on with a wild yell. She fought hard but she had very little strength and she was weakening quickly, then someone hit her over the head and she blacked out.

* * *

**"AAA!"** Someone had splashed ice cold water on her head and she felt herself pulled up by her hair.

She opened her eyes weakly and looked into the hated golden eyes of Azula. "That is so sad that your warriors are so selfish as to leave behind their leader for torture." Someone punched her in the stomach and she would've fell if she wasn't being held by her hair. "So tell me, who came for you?" Sukki glared at her and didn't answer. Azula nodded and she was hit again this time in the face.

"Your highness, one of the soldiers said it was a woman. They never saw her face, she kept her hood up, but they said she fought skillfully with duo blades." the guard standing near her bowed low to her and she turned on him.

"Duo blades?" she asked. Her voice was soft and thoughtful.

"Yes your highness."

Her face hardened. "So she isn't dead after all," she said quietly to herself. "Guard!"

"Yes Princess?"

"Send a messenger to my father. Tell him that my dear sweet mother is alive, and a traitor."

Sukki's eyes widened. They'd been rescued by the _firelady_??

"As for this piece of trash, Take her to the deepest darkest cell in this prison and _leave_ her there."

* * *

_**"SOKKA**... Sokka please... I need you..."_she was hurt and dying. He tossed and turned in his sleep trying to rid himself of the dream. _"Sokka... I need you..." _Then he saw her, she was laying on a dirt ground in a dark dungeon, and her body was bruised and broken and her face was cut and swollen. Tears streamed out of his eyes and he saw her lips move to form weak words. _"I can't live much longer... Sokka... I need you... help me... Sokka..."_ His eyes flew open and he found himself sweating coldly in his bed and breathing hard.

"Sukki... hold on... I'm coming." he gripped the hilt of a long dagger on the nightstand by his bed. "Hold on."

* * *

**THE **next day, they sat sail with twenty-five boats with thirty soldiers on each boat. In Paso Cove, they would meet with the rest of the invasion force, ten submarines, that carried twenty soldiers each. Nine- hundred and fifty warriors in all would set said for the Fire Nation in four days time. It was not enough to overrun the whole fire nation, so Aang had to hurry and find and fight the Fire lord. If he failed, they could only hope for a miracle.

* * *

**There's my chapter! Guess what? I feel very dumb because I just discovered how to use the line tool thingie. :p REVIEW PLEASE!**


	20. Night Before the Invasion Part I

**Okay people! Can you believe I'm on Chapter 20 already?? It seems like just yesterday that I posted this thing! Well, we're nearing an end here, read this chapter now and review when you're finished! Thank you!**

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**THE **waves crashed precariously against the rocks as the ships pulled into Paso Cove. Ships loaded with warriors from the island Kioshi, waterbending masters and warriors from the north, east, west, and returning from the southern tribes, and earth kingdom warriors and earthbenders from the various kingdoms across the world. Banners of every which color flew about in the air, and twenty-five ships anchored around the cove and ten submarines were under the water.

From the sky above, the massive form of the Avatar's sky bison appeared, and from the ship of the leaders of each nation, were his friends; two of the greatest benders in existence, the former leader of an effective band of rebels turned very powerful master waterbender, the Scarred Prince himself, the legendary Dragon of the West, and a girl, seemingly insignificant in any way, but to none of their knowledge but hers, the possessor of an extremely rare and awesome ability. Until the time is precise, she intends to keep everyone in the dark.

* * *

"**WE** should get some sleep; we sail for the Fire Nation tomorrow." She bent the rest off the water out of her hair from her bath and started pulling her under garments back on. The three girls all shared their own huge tent with a large symbol of Yin and Yang on the front flaps. On one side, there were three large tubs for bathing, in the middle, there was a circle table, and on the far side were three comfortable cots for the girls to sleep.

Toph lazily spat water out of her mouth fountain style and sank deeper into the hot water until it barely touched her bottom lip. "Maybe you're right Sugar Queen, but this bath just feels _so_ good! Five more minutes." She ducked under the water and blew bubbles for a few seconds then surfaced again. "Ahhhhhhhhh!" She sighed in contentment.

Katara smiled as she finished pulling on her night robes. "Toph if you don't come out of there soon you'll turn into a shriveled up sea prune!"

Toph giggled. "Okay fine I'll get out." She stood up in the tub letting the water roll off of her and flipped her hair back wetting everything directly in front of and behind her including Katara. Katara gasped and raised her arms uselessly.

"Toph! I just dried off!" she complained.

"Well you're a waterbender so you can dry off again and dry me off too while you're at it," the younger girl replied sensibly.

Katara shook her head and smiled again, then bent the water off of both of them.

"Thank you," Toph said grabbing her clothes and pulling them on.

"Sure," Katara rubbed the back of her neck and looked around the tent. "Toph?"

"Mm?"

"I'm gonna go see Zuko really quick okay?"

"Sure. Aang said he'd come by before he went to sleep. So as much as I love you Sugar Queen-,"

"I know, it's okay."

She started towards the tent opening then stopped and looked back at Toph. "Where's Yisu?"

The girl shrugged as she slipped into her shirt. "Probably off somewhere with Jet."

* * *

**JET & YISU**

**THE** moon shown almost full down onto the large army camp. There, where the edge of the camp kissed the line of the forest, in the ghost like glow of the moon, stood two figures standing together under the eves of an evergreen tree.

**YISU** sighed inhaling Jet's sweet scent and savoring the special treat of being held in his arms. She hated to think that this could be their last moment together. When his arms tightened their hold around her, she could tell he was thinking the same thing. She buried her face into his chest and felt him kiss the top of her head. He moved his head down and shivers went up her spine as she felt his warm breath on her neck. His hand moved up to around her shoulders, and his other around her waist and she enjoyed his touch as his fingers ran through her hair.

"Jet I-,"

"Shhh...," he kissed her neck beneath her ear and she shivered pleasantly again. "Don't say anything. You'll spoil the feeling," he whispered.

"What feeling?" she whispered back.

"The magic one," he replied.

"Magic?" she pulled away from him slightly so that she could look up at him.

"Well if you keep talking you won't be able to feel it anymore." he said a smile teasing his lips. He kissed her forehead. "Just close your eyes," he kissed each of her eyes shut and gently held her head to his chest. "Listen," he whispered into her ear, his sweet breath tickled her skin. "Feel," His hand traveled slowly down from her shoulder lightly to her arm. His fingers smoother her skin and found their way into her hand. He lifted it slowly and placed it over her heart.

Then she felt it. The slow steady thump of his heart, beating in perfect time with hers. It felt as if liquid sunshine was being pumped from her heart instead of blood, and she felt a slight tingle at the tips of her fingers and toes as if touched by electricity.

"I feel it!" she whispered excitedly. She looked up at him again and he met her gaze with a smile.

"You know what it is right?" he asked stroking her loose black hair. A soft breeze teased the loose strands across her face and he smoothed them away gently.

She nodded. "Yes. Yes I do." Her eyes glistened with the threat of tears.

He leaned down towards her and kissed her lips gently. When he pulled away he wiped away a fallen tear and his smile faded and his face became serious.

"I love you Yisu." He held her face in his hands and wiped away another tear.

She held his wrists and more tears escaped her eyes. "What if something happens Jet?" she knew it's not what he wanted to hear, but the question had been eating her alive. "What if you get hurt or- or-,"

"Or die?" he finished looking straight into her eyes.

She stared back into his, and she couldn't hold back the sobs. Her shoulders heaved and she squeezed her eyes shut as she nodded shamefully and dropped his wrists to cover her face. "Yeah..." she sniffed, "What if- I can't-,"

He grabbed her shoulders and shook her enough to jostle her. "Listen to me, no matter the outcome of tomorrow's battle, I swear, I _will_ come back to you," he moved her hands away from her face. "_Nothing_, will stop me." He wiped her face with the palm of his hand and she opened her eyes again and met his looking earnestly into hers. "Do you trust me?"

She shook as tears poured out of her eyes. "I love you." Right response at the wrong time.

"Do you trust me?" he repeated shaking her again.

She cried even harder and her whole self trembled. "You can't give me your word on that Jet." she said avoiding his gaze.

His eyes searched her face. "My word is mine to give," his hand lifted her chin. "I'm giving it to you now Yisu, the only way for it to work is if you take. Do you trust me?"

Her eyes opened again. She knew the answer he wanted to hear, but her heart wouldn't let her give it. "I can't," she said shaking her head. "Not on this." His face changed again. She'd hurt him.

He bit the top of his bottom lip and dropped his hands to his sides. "Fine," he backed away from her slowly and turned. "Fine." he started walking away.

"No Jet! No! Don't go!" she ran after him and stood in front of him with her hands on his chest to stop him. The tears continued to fall. "Don't leave me now Jet! Not now!"

He took her hands and smoothed them over with his thumbs. "You don't trust me Yisu." He threw her hands away from him, a pained look in his eyes. "Why can't you just take my word?"

She grabbed his hands again and pressed them to her face. "I can't Jet! You know I can't! Please don't do this to me! Please!" She was quite the sight to see; long black hair blowing in the wind, tears streaking down her face, falling from dark eyes. "I love you Jet! I love you I love you I love you! Isn't that enough?"

"What is love without trust Yisu?" he demanded taking his hands out of her grasp. "An empty promise of happiness." He shook his head at her. "You say you love me, take my word!"

She didn't answer him, she just cried and cried and he turned away from her again. As she watched his retreating form, a wave of sadness washed over her and banished all traces of the previous magical feeling. And she realized, if she didn't have Jet, this is how she would feel everyday for the rest of her life.

"Jet!" she started to run after him. "Jet stop! Please Jet!" she ran faster until she reached him at the beach, then stood in front of him once more. "Jet, please stop! I trust you! I trust you with my life, with my soul, and with my heart! Jet please just stop!"

He looked at her, taking in her small, heavily breathing figure, and then nodded slowly. "Do you trust that I'll keep my promise to come back to you?"

One quick sob escaped her throat and she nodded. "If you swear it, I'll hold you to your word."

He looked at her a while longer and she thought he wouldn't move, but then he came and took her back into his arms. She gripped the cloth of his shirt that covered his chest then squeezed her eyes shut as more tears emerged. He sighed into her hair and his embrace tightened and he held her as if he never would let go.

* * *

**AANG & TOPH**

_**(lets just pretend English, French, & Spanish accents exist here, aye?;)**_

"**TOPH?** Are you there?" The ground opened beneath him suddenly and he fell through with a short scream. Then he shot back out of the ground in the tent with Toph grinning down at him.

"What's up?" He jumped up quickly and caught her in an embrace and kissed her cheek. Then jumped back away from her and stood with mock formality.

"Hello Miz.Toph, I hope you are finding your living quarters to your liking?" he put on a heavy English accent and paced around the tent with his hands behind his back and nose in the air.

"Ah yes, tis quite fabulous," Toph said playing along, "Although I do have just one complaint." She cocked her head and stroked her chin thoughtfully.

Aang gasped dramatically then his accent turned French, "And vat! Mademoiselle, could possibly be, ze problem?"

"A very leetel man! He bozers me ven I don't vant him, and ven I do, how do you say, _desire_ him, he is novere to be foun!" she dropped her arms and opened her palms to indicate she'd lost something.

"Ah!" he switched to Spanish. "Den we shall find dis man! An we shall hang heem by da hairs on hees cheen, and maken him _suffer_ for disappointing da Senorita!"

Toph nodded wisely, "Da Senor is correcto! But! I have a better idea!"

"What? AAH!" The ground slide from underneath him again but this time he moved around in a circle faster and faster and faster until she stopped abruptly and he fell forward on his face."

Toph laughed and pointed. "Is the punishment suitable for the late boyfriend?"

Aang spat dirt out of his mouth then stood up and nodded. "But wait! What about the diabolical girlfriend?"

"Huh? Whoa!" She shot up ward as a column of dirt appeared underneath her and fell only to be caught and set gently on her feet by Aang. She kissed his cheek and they sat on the bed and laughed.

When they sobered, Toph put her head on Aang's shoulder, and the pair sighed as the thought of tomorrow settled heavily upon them.

"Tomorrow-,"

"Listen Aang, I don't give a flying hogmonkey's hoot! what you think your destiny is, I'm going to be there for you no matter what."

"Toph I-,"

"Don't argue with me."

Aang laughed, "Don't you think that by now, I've learned not to do that?"

She shrugged. "Some people don't learn their lessons like they should. _You_ tend to be one of those people."

The boy grabbed a pillow and hit her with it. "Thanks Toph, that really means a lot coming from you." She gasped then found a pillow and they went on for the next few minutes battering each other with feather filled fluffiness.

When they finally stopped, they sat on the ground again, and their laughs reduced to giggles and then finally ended. Aang wrapped his arm around Toph, and Toph rested her head on his shoulder.

"Toph?"

"Mm?"

"I'm glad you're with me."

She smiled. "I'm glad to be with you. I'll be with you all the way to the end Aang."

* * *

**KATARA & ZUKO**

**HER** eyes were closed as she counted to nine with each breath, meditating peacefully as she bent the water all around her. A cool ball of power centered itself deep in her stomach, usually she locked it away, but tomorrow, she would be needing it.

She continued to breathe as she started to lose count and her eyes remained shut. She spun, and swooped, and moved gracefully with the water, until it was all one fluid motion.

**HE** watched her from his place behind a sea wrought log, and chuckled lightly as he suffered a small case of déjà vu. The silvery light of the nearly moon cast itself upon her exposed skin, giving her a mysterious, dream like look. Her body moved gracefully with the water, as if she were a part of the ocean. Each lift of her hands, each sway of her hips, the ribbons of water so smooth and perfect; it all fit together in one silky motion after the other.

She spun around again, and he stood up, her eyes flew open and a water whip was ready in her hands in an instant.

"Zuko!" She exclaimed surprised. She ran out of the water with surprising speed and he found clinging to him, with both her arms and legs, a petite, nearly nude, and dripping wet Katara. She peppered his face with kisses and he managed to some how catch her lips with his.

_Nearly nude... I wonder, what's under these bindings..._ he slapped himself mentally. _What? I'm allowed to think it now that we're kind of a couple!_ His hands came together around her back at the tie that kept her top bindings on. _Hmmm..._ He slapped himself again. _Zuko!_ Before either side of his brain could win though, Katara pulled out of the kiss but kept her arms around his neck and legs hooked around his waist.

"How're you feeling right now?" she asked.

_Hot. _He slapped himself mentally again. _That's not what she meant stupid!_ "I don't know."

"Really?" wonder was written all over her face.

"Well, there's how I'm feeling now as in _now_, right here at this moment," _damn... this is awkward_, "And there's now as in what I'd feel if I weren't in the present situation." _You are the most incredibly ignorant and absent-minded idiot-!!_

Her head tilted to the side and at first he thought she wanted him to kiss her again but then she raised her eyebrow at him and smiled slightly. "What would you call your present situation?" she asked, her finger tracing the bone structure on his face lightly.

He felt himself tremble at her soft touch. "Um... well-," he felt the blood rush to his face and he met her gaze.

She was looking at him with amusement. "What does that mean?" She brought her lips to his but she barely grazed his lips instead of kiss them. _Damn it! Where did she learn all these games?!_

"You know, this is not fair. You seem to know all the rules to this game so naturally you're winning. So I propose we play a new game where I have a chance of winning." he looked at her a smirked but the smile didn't vanish.

She hoisted herself up higher on his waist so that she looked down at him. Her hands found their way into his hair, and he found himself eye level with her chest. _Good Agni!_ "Katara I-,"

But she covered his mouth with her lips and he trembled with pleasure. _This is more like it!_ Slap. She wrapped herself more tightly around him and their kiss became more intense and passionate.

Suddenly she dropped out of his arms and stood a few ways away from him breathing hard. "We shouldn't go that far," she said gasping for breath.

"We were just kissing," he said stepping towards her.

"It was about to turn into something else," she answered rubbing her arm.

"What's the problem with that? What if one of us or both of us doesn't survive tomorrow and-,"

"Don't even think that!" Katara snapped angrily before he could finish, Lian's words returned to her and she trembled slightly. "Don't you dare think that," she whispered.

"There's always that possibility Katara," he said in a soft yet strong voice.

"I'd rather not think about it."

They stood a few seconds longer then he stepped towards her again then took her into his arms and kissed the top of her head.

They stood there together soaking in the moment, not saying anything, not wanting to have to face the horrible thought that one of them might come out alone.

* * *

**SOKKA & SUKKI**

**THE** tent was empty; Zuko, Jet, and Aang all had their girls to go to but he was all alone.

_Not for long. I'm coming Sukki. And I'll save you_. He laid down on his cot and stared up at the roof of his tent. _Just hang on a little longer._

**SHE** held her stomach and coughed violently falling forward to the dirt ground of the cell. This one was even deeper than her last one but she had no gaurds; their intentions were to leave her there to starve to death. She'd had nothing to eat or drink for three days.

She laid back against the cell wall and tried to sigh but found that breathing too deeply hurt her chest. Her body was sore, and battered and broken. She didn't know if she could live long enough for Sokka to come for her.

"Hurry Sokka," she whispered.

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**REVIEW PLEASE!**


	21. Night Before the Invasion Part 2

**Sorry about the long wait! Track is so **_**tedious!**_** Guess what? MY TEAM IS UNDEFEATED IN THE LEAGUE!! I am **_**very**_** happy! Sp happy in fact, that I'm posting this next chapter!**

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**OZAI**

**HIS **traitorous son was returning tomorrow with the Avatar, though not as his captor, but as his ally. He was coming to destroy him.

The man looked at himself in the mirror of his lavatory. His long black hair fell down past his shoulders, and his golden eyes, stared fiercely back at him. His pale face, that would've been handsome if only he smiled every once in a while, was stone cold and strong.

Then his reflection changed, became younger, more inexperienced, and he saw himself- no... this man has a flaming scar over his eye- he saw _Zuko_, looking back at him through his own fiery eyes. Zuko, his first born son, his _only_ son, whom he'd scarred with his own flame. His son gazed back at him defiantly and Ozai felt something inside of him he had not felt in a long time. Fear. Zuko was grown now. No longer the young fourteen year old who'd disrespected him in the war chamber. He was a man. A powerful young man, and Ozai was fearful.

He tore his gaze away from the mirror as he felt his temper flare. Why did Zuko have to be so different from him? Why couldn't he be more like Azula? Azula is perfect. If only they could switch places; banishing a daughter is much less of an embarrassment than banishing a son. But Zuko had also betrayed him, and in doing so, he dishonored the entire royal family. The only way to remove the dishonor was to destroy the one who'd brought it. But Ozia was afraid.

Nevertheless, he would make sure to be ready when Zuko returned. If he were to go down, he'd go down the honorable way.

* * *

**URSA**

**THE** boat glided gently onto the beach and the Kioshi warriors all awoke with a start.

"We're here," Ursa said quietly from the bow of the boat. She stood up and one by one helped the women out of the boat before tying it to a tree. They stood together in a group, all with solemn expressions on their thin pale faces. Ursa knew there was nothing she could say to make them feel better. Their leader was gone, and they all knew she would die before she would ever snitch.

"This way," she motioned for them to follow her then wrapped her dark robes about her so that she became a shadow.

**...**

**AS** they emerged from the trees, the people of the tiny village stirred restlessly as if waiting for something, they didn't know what, but something to come. A light from one of the huts appeared and a figure wrapped in a black cloak much like Ursa's emerged and slowly made its way towards them.

"Ursa? Is that you?" a soft voice came from beneath the hood of the cloak.

"Yes. I've returned with the Kioshi warriors," Ursa said motioning towards Ti-Ta and the others. "Take them to your huts and give them food, clothes and rest. They've already been through so much the least we can do is make them comfortable."

The figure pushed her hood back slightly revealing her face. Dark black hair down to her shoulders framing a youthful face of about thirteen. A face with amber eyes hidden behind thick lashes under dark bangs that have seen too much pain and sadness in their short lifetime.

The girl nodded then motioned for the travel worn warriors to follow her. "My name is Reina. Please, follow me."

**...**

**URSA **had been living on this island away from the fire nation in exile ever since that night when she had defeated Azulon in their Agni Kai. She entered her hut and looked around at her measly possessions.

Funny, she thought. How she'd gone from a life of the Fire Lady, to being an outcast, from having everything in the world to nothing. Funny. How the same fate had happened to her son. Her precious boy.

She untied the string around her throat and removed her cloak setting on the little table beside her bed. She sat down in a chair and looked at herself in her little mirror, then picked up her brush and started combing her hair.

_I wonder... After tomorrow, will anything be the same? Will I see my son... my dear Zuko._ She opened a drawer in the little dresser and pulled out the picture she'd kept for so long. It was a picture of her family. She, Ozai, Azula, and Zuko. They looked so happy in the picture. And they had been. All of them. But the simple pleasure of a loving family hadn't been enough for Ozai, he wanted more. He wanted power, he wanted to become the Fire Lord. He wanted it more than anything, even more than he wanted Ursa.

She sighed and put the picture away as she remembered the time before Ozai had succumbed to madness. He'd been wonderful then...

"_Excuse me my Lady," she looked up from her book into the eyes of the handsome young Fire Nation prince and smiled. He always seemed to be in the garden when she was, always wanted to talk but he never did. Only smiled shyly and pretended to examine the roses._

"_Your Highness, to what do I owe the honor of your audience?" She asked closing her book. Ozai smiled, then turned and searched the flowers in the garden. He found one, a red, red rose and he plucked it, delicately avoiding the thorn, then he turned back towards her and knelt before her._

"_Will you just accept it?" he held the rose towards her, and she took it carefully, her fingers brushed his lightly. "I would like to say, that you are as beautiful as this rose. But I would be lying." _

_She looked curiously into his golden eyes._"_What does his Highness mean?"_

_He smiled again. "I mean, that beauty is an earthly word, meant to define worldly things. But you are not of this world, to call you beautiful, would be a shameful understatement."_

_Ursa felt herself flush pink. "I am at a loss of words my Prince." _

"_Ozai. Please call me by my name." he begged. _

"_Ooozai..." she said it softly, her lips making a lovely circle in the beginning. He smiled and stood up, then took her hand and kissed it gently while looking closely, and deeply into her eyes. _

"_Thank you my Lady." And he turned and left, leaving her staring at his back, her heart pounding wildly in her chest. _

_She gently stroked the soft petals of the rose. "Ozai."_

...Alas! Ozai had been corrupted. His heart tainted, by the will of Azulon, he was driven to the path of cruelty, and power, made to believe that peace could only be achieved through blood, and through the suffering of others. That the world _needed_ to be under the control of the one Fire Lord.

He'd morphed into someone Ursa did not know. She was sure, that the dashing young prince who'd given her that rose was dead, and a cold, horrible robot had taken his place. The Ozai she had known could not hurt her then way he had, or scarred and banished his own son. His own son! He must be dead that Ozai she had known.

Something wet ran down her face. She touched it thoughtfully. A tear. She was crying. Funny. She hadn't cried in so long. Funny.

* * *

**AZULA**

**THE **shadows of the flames danced against the wall and Azula sat in se san, with her eyes closed as she meditated quietly. _one, two, three... breath... _Zuko was returning. _four, five, six... breath. _He and the Avatar will destroy Ozai. _seven, eight, nine.. breath._ Then she will kill them both, and she will continue her father's conquest and lead the fire nation to victory._ one, two, three... breath. _The war will be over, and she will rule the world as the one all powerful Fire Lady. _four, five, six... breath._The first in fire nation history to rule with out a Fire Lord and the world will tremble at her feet. _seven, eight, nine..._ Her golden eyes opened and she watched the shadow dance. _now breath..._

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**This chapter is kinda short, but it's a chapter. If you review I'll make the next one nice and long capiche? REVIEW please! ;)  
**


	22. The Invasion Part 1: Finding Ozai

**Here it is! The very highest peak of the story! The long awaited climax, THE BATTLE THAT WILL DECIDE THE FATE OF THE WORLD!! Why aren't you reading? START READING! **

**P.S. It was too long so I had to divide it up into two chapters.**

* * *

**THE** next day, they sat sail with twenty-five boats with thirty soldiers on each boat. In Paso Cove, they would meet with the rest of the invasion force, ten submarines, that carried twenty soldiers each. Nine- hundred and fifty warriors in all would set said for the Fire Nation in four days time. It was not enough to overrun the whole fire nation, so Aang had to hurry and find and fight the Fire lord. If he failed, they could only hope for a miracle.

The sun had not yet risen and the stars were still twinkling brightly, not yet ready to go to bed. The camp was nearly completely packed, and there were only a few fires left to be doused.

* * *

**TWENTY-FIVE **war boats spread out and surrounded the fire nation island, the ten subs went in for the invasion, the avatar and his group was in the sub in the lead. As they neared their destination, tensions arose, no one knew if they would come back alive. Or if they would come back at all.

* * *

**"SURFACE!** We need air!"

"Yes Master Katara."

When the submarines were on the surface of the water, they all went on deck and breathed in the salty sea air. Katara stood at the railing and stared out into the horizon where the ocean met the sky.

Today was the day when Aang would finally destroy the firelord, the day she would avenge the death of her mother, the destruction of her village, the pain caused all over the world, she would avenge it all. She, and Sokka, and Toph and Aang, and Zuko. They will fight until the last of Ozai's evil is destroyed. Zuko... she prayed so hard that he would stay with her, stay on her side, she loved him too much for- exactly, she loved him too much. If he betrayed her, she would be broken for the rest of her life.

"You okay?" She jumped slightly then felt warm strong arms wrap themselves around her waist. He kissed her hair and rested his chin on top of her head. She put her hands over his and smiled.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" She loved the way she could feel his heart beating against her back, and his warm breath in her hair, and the safety she felt whenever she was in his arms. She loved him.

"I'm fine." he said quietly.

She turned around in his arms so the she faced him. She looked up into his beautiful golden eyes, a felt her love for him throbbing like a cut. "I know you're going to make a wonderful Fire Lord once the war is over."

He smiled slightly at the corner of his mouth and stroked her cheek lightly with his thumb. "You don't know that we'll win," he said.

Her smile fell and she took his hand away from her face, "Don't say that." she warned. "Don't say that."

He kissed her cheek. "Alright, I won't say it."

He held her for the next minute or so and she closed her eyes savoring the last moment she had with him before they reached the Fire Nation.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

* * *

**INSIDE** the submarine Jet paced the floor nervously. Yisu had been nowhere to be found that morning and he was worried. _She left! She must've left she was mad at me for giving her such a hard time last night. Oh god why am I such an asshole! _

He shook his head._ Jet, you're over thinking everything, she probably thought saying goodbye would be too painful. _He nodded. _Yeah, that sounds right. She didn't want to say goodbye... What if I don't come back though? For the love of-!!_ Suddenly he heard a crash and a short scream come from inside the weapons room and he hurried towards the racket.

"Stupid, dumb, ugly-," he opened the door and hit a light switch.

"Yisu! What the hell are you doing here!?" She lay in a tangled heap of spears, and bows and other weaponry, and she looked up at him from beneath the mess.

"I don't know, but it wasn't easy getting here," she struggled under the heap and he rushed to help her.

"This is no time for jokes! When you followed me the first time was cute but this is just stupid! Yisu what were you thinking?!" he pulled her out and up and hugged her tightly, then alternated between kissing her face, hugging her, and scolding her.

"Do you know how worried I was when you weren't there to say goodbye?" he kissed her again before she could answer. "And what are you doing here? Are you out of your mind!?" he kissed her again. "You are! You're stupid Yisu, you are so stupid you could get hurt or killed or-, oh my God!" he took her face into his hands and kissed her again roughly.

When he finally pulled away from her she held his hands to her face and looked up at him. He was breathing heavily at being so worked up and now he relaxed slightly under the gaze of her cool turquoise eyes.

"What are you doing here?" he demanded this time expecting an answer.

"I followed you." she said simply.

"I can see that! How could you be so stupid?!"

"It was the only way I could make sure you kept your promise."

He stared at her, she was totally serious. He kissed her again and hugged her. "You are NOT leaving this submarine once we land." he looked at her again. "Promise me," he ordered.

"I promise," she said lightly. He knew somewhere inside of him that she was lying but there was nothing he could do about it. _Unless... I wonder if this place comes with cells..._

"Yisu," he whispered. _This girl drives me crazy. _He hugged her, she felt so small and so delicate in his arms; he felt he needed to protect her at all costs.

"Don't worry about me Jet, I'll be okay." _I can't help it Yisu, I love you! I'm going to worry about you until the day I die!_ He felt her soft lips on his cheek.

"Stay in the sub." he knew she wouldn't, but for now, he wanted to pretend she would.

* * *

**HE** scratched his head uncomfortably. _How does Zuko live with all that hair?_ He hated having his hair no matter how many times Katara said it looked fine.

The wind whipped against his face and he looked on towards the Fire Nation. In just a few hours, he was going to be in the fight to determine the fate of the whole world... no pressure huh?

"Hey," Toph sneaked up on him and kissed his cheek.

"Hey," he said smiling at her forgetting for a while she couldn't see him. She wrapped her arms around his middle and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Don't worry about it Twinkle Toes, I'm going to be there, right there with you until the end."

He wrapped an arm around her. "I know you will Toph."

"Everyone below deck!" They heard Katara yell. "We submerge as soon as it's a clear!"

* * *

**THE** island was in sight. They'd been spotted. An alarm rang out and defenses were set up immediately. The submarines surfaced and landed and warriors poured out yelling fierce war cries and courageously fighting off the fire nation soldiers.

"Look! The Avatar!" someone yelled. A cheer went up on the good guy's side as the young Avatar on his armored bison with his friends flew towards the heart of the city. Towards the palace.

* * *

**"IT'S OVER."** Zuko stood at the balcony of his palace and looked out over his beloved home. "It's over," he whispered again. The war was over. Ozai had been defeated. But at a price higher than any of them wanted to pay...

* * *

**..._that morning when they reached the palace..._**

**"HOLD **on! Guys I feel something!" Toph stopped and put her palm to the ground.

"What is it?" Sokka asked hopefully.

"There's something down there... it's big, very big."

"It's a secret hideout for the Fire Lord to hide during the eclipse," Zuko explained. "But I don't know if he's there. They obviously knew about the invasion and about me on your side. We'll have to check both places."

Aang opened his mouth to speak but Sokka interrupted him. "Is there a prison down there?" Toph concentrated again then nodded.

"I think so, but it's really deep."

"Azula must be down there. Toph you have to come with us."

"I can't, I'm staying with Aang," she said straightening up then going to stand next to Aang.

"Toph they need an earth bender if they're going to get down there to save Sukki in time." the boy looked at Sokka, that look said a lot, he'd heard Sokka call out to her in his sleep, seen the longing in his eyes whenever one of the couples hugged or kissed. He knew how much he missed Sukki, and he knew how much he wanted to find her as soon as possible. "Toph please, you need to switch places with Zuko, he's powerful and I trust him with my life."

Zuko was unsuspectingly shocked. Aang trusted him. He _really_ trusted him. Toph raised her eyebrow. "Fine, but I'm going to find you as soon as I can."

Katara looked at the sun, "Aang, Zuko, you guys better hurry, the eclipse is in fifteen minutes."

They separated, Aang and Zuko hurried into the palace, and Toph started a tunnel into the earth.

* * *

**THE** clouds were gathering. Funny, today was supposed to be clear. The Fire Nation soldiers were faltering, it was clear they'd been expecting them, they'd known about the invasion, but they were weak. They'd sent most of the troops away to take over the rest of the world, with only a select few left to defend the Capital.

They retreated to the inner walls and Jet found Hakoda. "We need to rally the troops and break through the second defense. Send the word out to the captains."

"Yes sir." Jet nodded curtly then turned to find the five captains.

Meanwhile, the sky darkened and the clouds began to rumble angrily.

* * *

**THE** racket outside was making her nervous. Where was Jet? Is he okay? She paced the floor impatiently and chewed her nails, every once in a while glancing over at the door.

_Don't be stupid Yisu if you go out there you'll only get yourselves killed and that won't make Jet very happy when he comes back._ She stopped her pacing. _When he comes back? How do you know he's coming back?_ She bit her finger and stared at the big metal door again. _You're not going out there_. She walked slowly towards it then reached out and grasped the handle. _You promised Jet!_ Suddenly, there was a loud boom of thunder and she heard waves roaring around the sub. _Uh-oh. Where did this storm come from?_ The next moment she forgot to think. She turned the handle and pushed the door open and was met by a huge gust of wind.

She fell back with a small scream and landed on her rump back inside the sub. _C'mon Yisu be tough! You can do this it's not like you're completely helpless! Get up!_ She huffed and blew a lock of hair away from her forehead then stood up again. With the wind blowing against the door like it was, she had to push harder against it until it opened again and she stumbled out and landed knee deep in water.

The sky was dark and grey the ocean was churning dangerously; Yisu squinted out towards the water and saw or thought she saw a blue glow. She turned away and her breath hitched in her throat. Fire Nation balloons were leaving the capital and flying towards the submarines. "They're going to shoot the subs?" they came closer and she nodded confirmation as if she was talking to someone. "Uh yeah, they're going to shoot the subs." She stood for a minute then her eyes widened and she looked up at the approaching balloons. "Shoot the subs!?" She ran towards the fighting.

* * *

**JET** looked up and saw the balloons. "They're heading for the submarines." he said to himself. His jaw tensed. "Yisu." He turned sliced down an on coming soldier then turned and ran back to the beach.

"Jet!" Hakoda yelled. "Jet where are you going?! Jet! We need you!"

* * *

**THEY** silently crept from wall to wall, on the look out for any soldiers, but everywhere appeared deserted. It was so strange to Zuko now, coming home and instead of walking proudly through these corridors as the prince of the Fire Nation, son of Fire Lord Ozai, he crept from shadow to shadow like a thief. He could have laughed at himself if not for the seriousness of the situation.

No sound came from anywhere other than from the soft padding of their feet on the black marble floors. "They all could be in the underground chambers," Zuko said carefully glancing around the corners before moving swiftly to another wall.

"We still better check." Aang replied.

Zuko nodded. "The throne room is just up ahead. Hurry we have ten minutes." They moved quickly across they hall until the reached the big magnificent doors of the throne room.

"On three," Zuko said and Aang nodded quickly. "One, two, three!" They ran into the doors as hard as they could and pushed through them with such ease they were still running until they reached the middle of the room. "Whoa!" Zuko grabbed Aang's arm and stopped him from falling forward.

"Thanks," he said breathlessly. Then his face fell. The room was empty.

"Come on Aang we've still got eight minutes," he turned and walked quickly out of the throne room. "Hurry!"

* * *

**"SH!"** Toph held up her hand. "Someone's coming!"

The siblings stood behind her and held their breath as footsteps approached quickly. "It's just one.. a guard."

"He's mine," Sokka said through tightly clenched teeth. Before either of the girls could stop him, he sprung from his hiding space and had the guard against the wall with a dagger to his throat. "Where are you keeping the Kioshi Warriors!?"

The man's eyes were wide with fear, he was old and skinny, not even a guard, his eyes were so cowardly, Sokka almost felt sorry for him. But he wanted to find Sukki now. "WHERE!?"

"P- please! The Kioshi warriors escaped a few days ago!" The man said in a high pitched voice. "A woman in dark robes bearing duo swords came and rescued them!"

Sokka's eyes widened and he felt himself begin to tremble. "All of them?" he asked hopefully. "Tell me!" He shook the man and the poor man broke out in a cold sweat.

"Please stop! Yes all of them!" he was breathing heavily then he looked up to the left side of his forehead as if remembering something. "No wait... not all of them." he said. Sokka's grip tightened. A feeling of dread welled up inside his stomach. _Please no... not Sukki.._

"Who is left and where is she?" he demanded, his voice cracked weakly but the man only thought he heard it.

"It was the leader of them all, a girl with red-brown hair-," Sokka closed his eyes and bit his lip so hard he drew blood.

He opened his eyes again. "Damn you Fire Nation scum! WHERE IS SHE!?" he was so close to her! If she was dead...

"I-In the d-d-dungeon! At the lowest level of the underground p-prisons! There are no guards, they left her there to die!"

His heart beat so fast in his chest he thought it would burst. "WHERE?!"

"Sokka! Let the poor man go! I can feel it under us a bit away!" Toph interrupted. Sokka threw the man away from him and turned towards the little earthbender.

"Come on then! Hurry!" he ordered, his eyes were moist as tears threatened to fall.

Toph ran ahead, Sokka followed closely and Katara brought up the rear with a quick sympathetic glance towards the crumpled man on the ground.

* * *

**"YISU! YISU!"** The water was up to his waist and the waves churned and foamed viciously around him as he waded into the water towards the submarines. The hot-air balloons were almost within bombing distance. He grabbed the handle to the big metal door and pulled against the wind with all his strength. "Yisu!" He yelled climbing inside. "Yisu! Where are you?!" Hr searched the rooms and the cabins but she was nowhere to be found.

Fear welled up inside of him. _She left! Damn it! I told her to stay in the sub!_ But somehow, he knew she wouldn't be there.

* * *

**SHE** quickly jumped behind a rock as a group of firebenders trotted by locked outside the outer wall. "Come on Yisu, get a hold of yourself. Be tough!"

"Hello, what's this?" A shadow fell over her and she jumped when she saw a huge Fire Nation soldier standing behind her. He had dark black hair and dark eyebrows. In his dark eyes she thought she saw flecks of red, and his face was handsome as the devils.

"What is a pretty little Earth Kingdom wench doing in the Fire Nation?" he grinned widely, baring dull yellow teeth and he took a step towards her. She backed away and tried to stand but only stumbled backwards. He moved quickly and grabbed her wrist pulling her roughly up to face him.

"Don't- touch- me!" she warned struggling to get out of his grasp. She gasped as his grip tightened. "You're pretty stupid man!" she yelled scornfully in his face. "There's a battle and a war going on and all you're thinking about is raping me?!" He grabbed her roughly by the hair and brought her face close to his so his sour breath reached her nostrils and she coughed.

"There's nothing you can do you stupid whore," her eyes begn to water at the horrible stench of his breath and she continued to stare defiantly into those horrible red flecked eyes. "All of your people are inside, dying. No one can save you." He pressed his horrible lips to hers suddenly and she shrieked into his mouth and bit his tongue as hard as she could.

He pushed her away then struck her across the face and threw her into the sand. "Bitch! You'll pay for that!"

"Touch her again and I swear your death will be even slower and more painful than I already intend to make it."

"Jet!" Yisu cried. Jet stood with a look of such fury on his face Yisu was sure he could kill the man just by looking at him.

* * *

**THE** soldier turned around and grinned when he saw Jet. "So are you this whore's lover? Am I supposed to be afraid of a little teenage boy?" He drew a big heavy sword from his belt. "Oooo!" he shivered mockingly. "I'm so scared."

With a fierce growl Jet attacked him with his two hooked blades. the man blocked his attack easily and laughed. Jet was so mad he shook uncontrollably. He was stronger than he ever knew and he attacked over and over. But his attacks were sloppy, they were full of emotion where skill should have been.

As Jet tired the man continued to laugh and mock him. "All that fury and passion; you should be a fire bender!" Just then, Jet felt as if he'd been hit on the head with a brick. Bending! Duh! "AAAAAARRRG!" he pushed the man back then turned to the angry ocean. "Lian! Where are you?!" The waves grew even bigger and started spitting and foaming like a giant mad dog.

**...**

**YISU** looked out towards the ocean. The blue glow she'd thought she'd seen earlier was brighter now, and suddenly, out of the midst burst a bright blue ball of light. The ball unfolded and Yisu recognized Lian, the ocean spirit. She glowed a cold icy blue and her long white hair whipped around in the wind. As she raised her hands to the sky, the clouds overhead began to spill giant raindrops, the wind howled and cried and the waves completely covered the submarines. Spears of ice shot out of the ships surrounding the island into the hot air balloons, destroying them, one by one. Yisu looked back at the fight. The Fire Nation soldier was... cowering? She looked at Jet and gasped. His eyes glowed bright icy blue and he had water twisted about him, twirling angrily to his will.

The man dropped his sword and turned to run, but one of Jet's water arms lashed out and grabbed him. Water forced its way into the man's nose and ears and wrapped around him, squeezing him until his bones crushed inside of him and blood gushed out of his ears and eyes. The man opened his mouth to scream but Jet shoved water down his throat so the scream came out as a gurgle. In a matter of minutes, the man was dead.

Then he turned to Yisu. His eyes were still glowing, and she looked at him in fright, but then she heard a gentle voice in her head.

"_Now is your time Yisu, reveal to the world, the new element to succeed the end of the Air Nomads._" It was Lian's voice. Yisu shivered, how did Lian know about her ability? She'd told no one.

She looked up at Jet, he held out a water step to her and she was filled suddenly with courage. She knew what she had to do. She stepped up onto the solid water and he lifted her up above him, then he summoned a wave and they rode the tsunami into the battle. Her mouth opened and her powerful voice reached the ears of all in the fight, deafening those of the enemy, strengthening those of the allies.

**...**

**EYES** looked to the ocean, and they saw a great, and monstrous wave ridden by the most powerful water bender alive and the world's first sound bender. The storm and the presence of Lian, and the dark sun, gave strength to the water benders and the Fire Nation soldiers and benders fought on uselessly until they knew they were hopeless. They threw down their weapons and shamefully accepted their defeat.

* * *

**"SH!"** Zuko held up his hand and footsteps approached.

"Zuko," Aang whispered.

"What?"

"The eclipse already started."

Zuko looked at him. "How much time do we have left?"

"Seven minutes."

The two stared at each other and a silent agreement was made.

"AAAAAAAAGGG!!" They jumped out of their hiding place and Zuko cut down all of the soldiers in his path then the two ran down the corridor, no longer caring if anyone saw them. They had seven minutes until the end of the eclipse. The Fire Lord was just ahead.

* * *

**SHE** was tired. So tired. She wanted to sleep... to sleep forever. Her eyelids fell slowly over her dull blue eyes. So tired. "I love you Sokka." she whispered weakly.

"Sukki..." was that her imagination? "Sukki... please..." Sokka's here! _Call his name!_ She opened her cracked lips and her lips formed his name but no sound emitted from her throat.

"Sokka... Sokka...," please hear me somehow!

"Sukki!" His voice was closer.

"Sokka..." still no sound. _Please find me!_

"She's in here!" Another voice, a girl's voice. She heard a loud crash then suddenly someone was at her side.

"Sukki!"

"Sokka..." She felt herself lifted and she would've grimaced in pain if she weren't so weak. "Sokka..."

"I'm here Sukki, I'm here just hold on." Something wet fell on her forehead. _Is he crying?_ She opened her eyes weakly but she couldn't see anything.

"Sokka she's hurt really badly, it's a miracle she's still alive." She felt her body become engulfed in something cool, then she felt the same coolness flow down her parched throat. Water. _Ah_! There _is_ such a thing! Such a magical, wonderful fluid! She greedily took in the life granting fluid then coughed weakly as she took in too much. Hey! She could cough! Her strength was returning; Katara must be healing her.

"Can't you go any faster?"

"I'm going as fast as I can."

"Well hurry!"

"Sokka stop worrying, she's going to be okay, she just needs rest." It was quiet for a few more minutes and Sukki opened her eyes. She was able to see this time, and she saw Sokka looking down at her with big blue eyes full of concern.

"Sukki?" he said softly.

She smiled and weakly lifted her finger to touch his jaw. "I knew you'd come," she whispered. He took her hand and kissed it gently then held it tightly in his own.

"Nothing would've stopped me," Sokka answered. As Katara looked on at her brother's face she noticed a strange certain change in him, as if a dark shadow had been removed from his face and or a long lost piece of him had been return. He looked... complete.

"Sokka, you need to get her out of here. Katara you can either go with him or come with me to find Aang." A_nd Ozai_. She shuddered inwardly. "If you guys run into any bad guys you'll need help," she reminded them.

Katara nodded. "I'll go with Sokka. Be careful Toph." Toph nodded. There was no time for sappy goodbyes and each of them knew they had the same horrible dread they would not see each other again.

"You too." Then she turned and was gone.

* * *

**"AZULA."**

"Yes my Lord?"

"A traitor is going to be here, in this room, in less than two minutes. Along with the Avatar..." he stroked his chin. "I don't like traitors. You know what the penalty for betrayal is."

The corner of her mouth turned up. "Yes my Lord."

"Take care of it."

"I'll do it personally."

* * *

**That damn Azula gives me the chills! Anyway! Invasion Part ONE! Review please! I'll post the second part as soon as I can!**


	23. The Invasion Part 2: The Final Battle

**Sorry! I had the worse writer's block ever and I've been so swamped with work... Just start reading yeah?**

* * *

**HE** slowly picked his way through the pieces of glass from the broken windows and gazed sadly at the burnt architecture that took hundreds of years to complete and were now ruined forever.

His palace had been damaged baldy in the fight. Oh well, the Fire Lord has been destroyed, that's all that matters right?

Just then, his eye caught a flash of gold and he quickly moved towards it. Yes. There it is, what he's been looking for. He bent down and picked it up as if it were the most fragile thing in the world. It is his now that his father is dead. This is his crown.

His country was in shambles but he would rebuild it, and it will be greater than it's ever been in one hundred years.

He looked at the flame shaped crown in his hands and sucked in a deep breath through his teeth. His country. He was the leader. The price had been _so_ great. f he'd have known what it was, would he still have done it? _I don't know..._

* * *

**"HELLO **brother. I thought I'd see you again, with the Avatar." A smug voice crept down to their ears from a corner somewhere and they stopped running. "Too bad I wish father were dead too, otherwise, I would've gladly carried out his orders to eliminate you."

Azula jumped down from her hiding place and landed between them and the room in which Ozai was waiting out the eclipse.

Zuko glared at his little sister and blocked her view of Aang. "Get out of our way Azula," he said coolly. "Or else, I'll make you."

She regarded him coolly with golden eyes so likes his, beneath thick eye lashes. "I suppose you want to go help him kill father," they caught a smirk at her lips, and Aang thought how many times he'd seen that same smirk on Zuko's mouth. "Well, I won't stop you." She looked boredly at her nails then back up at them. "You have three minutes until the end of the eclipse. Then, you both will surely be destroyed."

She looked at them again and this time a horrible shiver ran down both of their spines as she smiled at them and disappeared.

"Why didn't she try to stop us?" Aang asked Zuko.

"I don't know," the prince answered looking in the direction in which his sister had vanished. "But I have a hunch," he looked at Aang. "Don't ever let your guard down until we find her."

Just then, they heard the hurried footsteps of approaching soldiers. This was it. This was the time he'd been training for ever since the monks had discovered he was the Avatar. There was no time for deep thought, no time for meaningful soliloquies, it was time to face his destiny and he was ready.

He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath, then opened them again and they met Zuko's. One look, he knew what his friend was thinking. Friend... the Prince of the Fire Nation, was his friend. The thought made him smile almost but the situation was too serious.

The Avatar, and his friend, The Fire Prince, clasped hands then turned towards the door and charged as fast as they could towards the one man who had caused them both so much pain, and so much heart ache. It was time to restore balance to the world. And it was also time for revenge.

The doors flew open at the force of their two bodies and...

* * *

**AANG **had already reached the Fire Lord.

"C'mon Toph, he's just a few floors above you, you can do this!" She growled to herself under her breath then quickly dispatched two soldiers rounding a bend.

"Where are you Aang..." she mumbled running upward and feeling for his vibrations at the same time. This would be such a great time for him to _not_ be a freaking air bender!

Then she stopped suddenly. There he is! He was standing with Zuko and they were alone in a big room... wait... there's one more person... but they don't see him! Shit!

"Aang! Look out behind you!"

* * *

**"LOOK **out!" Zuko pushed him aside and blocked the dagger that would have landed in Aang's back.

Laughter came from the shadows and Fire Lord Ozai stepped out into view.

"So, this is the famous Avatar, here to destroy me. Along with my son, my own flesh and blood." Ozai's fiery eye's flickered over to Zuko's. His son stared back at him defiantly. "Look at you... all grown up. And a traitor. It's no matter, you would not have been able to succeed me anyways. You're too weak, just like your mother."

Zuko's knuckles turned white at the mention of his mother. Ozai laughed again. "Did I hit a soft spot?" He grinned terribly and stared at his son. I hear you're in love Zuko." Zuko's eyes flashed. _How did he know about Katara?_ "I know everything," he said reading his son's thoughts. "Take this advice, get rid of her. Love makes you weak, you could never be a strong ruler if you love." Zuko thought he saw his face soften. "That's why I banished you."

He frowned. _What?!_ "You banished me... because you wanted to get rid of everything you loved? Because you thought it would make you a better ruler?" he said.

Aang's presence was completely forgotten and the time until the end of the eclipse was ticking away.

"You loved me? You actually wanted me?" He sounded like a child crawling back to his mother after being punished for stealing the last cookie.

Ozai's face hardened again. "I love nobody."

One minute until the end of the eclipse and yet, no one felt a need for haste. That need was gone.

"But you did. You loved my mother. You loved me." he looked as he was going to cry.

"No. I only needed your mother to produce an heir. I shouldn't have married a woman with so much damn compassion in her heart."

"But you still chose her. Because you loved her. Father..."

Ozai's jaw tensed. So that's where Zuko get's it from. _Zuko is so much like his father._ Aang thought. "Father why? Why couldn't you ever accept me? Every son needs a father and you were never there for me. It's all I ever wanted in my life was your love and acceptance. I went on a hopeless two year search for the Avatar, I hurt uncle, I broke promises, I did it all for you! Why don't you want me?"

"Because you are like this!" Ozai yelled. "You feel too much! You were an embarrassment to me! You were too WEAK!" Emotions were all over Ozai's face and Aang saw anger, ferocity, and... regret?

"I'm not weak now!" Zuko yelled lighting his swords. "Everything I've been through that _you've_ put me through ever since Azula was born has molded me into who I am now! I'm strong and proud as ever and I don't need you anymore! I DON'T NEED YOU ANYMORE!!"

**...**

Ozai gazed at his son. He was taller and handsomer than when he'd last seen him. And he was right, he was strong. He wasn't the same fourteen year old he'd sent on that fruitless journey. Zuko was a man. And he was stronger than Azula, and stronger than him even.

Then it downed on him the difference between Azula and Zuko. Zuko wanted love, approval, and acceptance. Azula wanted to be better than Zuko. If he'd given Zuko what he wanted, Zuko would never have betrayed him. He knew no matter what, Azula would betray him in a second to benefit herself. He knew she'd let them in on purpose because she wanted him dead so she could succeed him. He'd known, but he didn't want to admit it. He'd chosen the wrong child to love.

"Fire Lord Ozai! I challenge you to an Agni Kai!"

Ozai looked at Aang as if just noticing him for the first time. Oh yeah, I'm supposed to fight him. As he took him in he saw a boy hardened by years of training for this day, for this very hour. He shouldn't have to carry the fate of the world on his young shoulders.

"I don't accept."

"You have no choice!" Then the sun was bare again and all three of them felt their firebending return to them.

_No_. He didn't want to fight him. But he knew, he really had no choice, he'd chosen this destiny, and he must face it like the Fire Lord must face destiny. Head on he would face it.

Aang entered the Avatar state and Ozai felt him grow in power. _Time to finish this_.

* * *

A column toppled knocking down another which knocked down another and continued in a domino affect.

Ozai jumped out of the way and shot fireball after fireball at Aang and blocked Zuko's continuous attacks. He couldn't help but notice his skill with the duo blades almost exceeded that of his mothers.

His thoughts distracted him too much and he was hit by a block of earth and fell down dazed.

This was it. His time had come and he must embrace it. Through half open eyes he saw the four elements all around him and the Avatar was in the midst of them. Fear struck his heart as he felt his death near him.

"Aang!" Zuko yelled. "The room's gonna cave! We have to get out of here!"

The Avatar landed on the floor before him and stood over him menacingly. His eyes were glowing fiercely white and Ozai could feel the power radiating off of him and his heart was struck with fear.

"Aang!"

HE put the balls of his hands together and gathered up a huge ball of fire in his hands.

Ozai turned his head and made eye contact with his son. He suddenly felt so guilty, so regretful he wished he was dead already! He looked at the scar on his son's face that he'd given him with his own flame and tears filled his eyes. _All he wanted was for me to love him, why couldn't I do that?_

Aang's fireball was getting bigger.

Ursa. He remembered when they were young. Yes, he'd loved her so much. She'd been the most wonderful thing that had ever happened to him. She made him happy. But Azulon had looked down on this love, he said it made him weak so Ozai had pushed her away. Azulon had molded him into the man he was now. His father had made him. Just like he made Zuko. _I DON'T NEED YOU ANYMORE!! _Those words hurt him. He remembered thinking of how great a father he would be when he finally had a son. He would be nothing like Azulon. Now he loved Zuko. He loved him with his entire being and he hoped somehow Zuko felt it. He looked into his son's golden eyes again so like his own and tried to tell him everything in one look.

_Please Zuko_, _don't make the same mistakes I did. Love your wife and love your son with all your heart. I'm so sorry my son. I'm so sorry. I love you. _

He though he saw Zuko nod then he shut his eyes tightly waiting for the Avatar's final blow.

* * *

**ZUKO **turned away and he felt Aang deliver the killing strike.

There. It was done, Aang had won, and the world was free of Ozai's tyranny. Strange. He thought it would be so much more... maybe later after it's sunk in.

The ceiling was falling and he knew the underground tunnels were collapsing. He ran and caught Aang as he returned from the Avatar state and fell over exhausted and unable to move.

"Come on Aang wake up." He shook him but the boy was just too tired. "Damn it!" He threw Aang over his shoulder and started towards the door but then a huge column of dirt shot out of the ground in front of him.

He felt a huge sense of relief when Toph jumped down and took Aang from him. "Come on," she said as another huge piece of the ceiling fell near them.

She stomped the earth up and they shot through the ceiling and up through the floor of the throne room.

* * *

**"UUUUUHHHHOOOOO**."

"Hey he's waking up!"

Aang opened his eyes and saw Toph and Zuko looking down at him.

He groaned again and realized his head was resting in Toph's lap. "Hey guys. Are we dead?"

Toph laughed softly then kissed his forehead. "No Twinkle Toes, we're alive."

"So we won?"

She nodded. "Yeah."

"Good."

Zuko looked at them and smiled slightly at the corner of his mouth then remembered Katara. _Where is she? Is she okay? _He didn't want to ask the other question; is she alive?

"Hey you guys, we should go find everyone now," he said putting his duo swords back into their sheaths. He hopefully wouldn't need them anymore.

"You're right we need to go, Toph can you...?"

"Mmhm." She helped him stand and let him lean on her as they slowly made their way out of the throne room.

"I can't believe it." Aang said resting his head tiredly on Toph's shoulder. "It's- AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!" A silver dagger protruded from his back and Toph felt it with horror as he writhed in pain.

"AANG!"

Blue lightning shot from a corner in the ceiling at Zuko. He reacting quickly and caught it at his finger tips and channeled it through his blood and redirected it back to where it came from. Azula fell to the ground with a thump. Dead.

"AAAAAAAAANNNGGG!" Toph's wail and cries filled the palace and echoed off the walls and there was nothing he could do. It was too late. The last airbender and the Avatar, was dead.

* * *

**Please don't kill me. Those daggers look dangerous you should put them down and review maybe? Seriously. I don't want to die. **


	24. The End

**So the last chapter Aang died. Sorry. But he had to go. There can't be FIVE elements! LAST CHAPTER!! Can you believe it? LAST FREAKING CHAPTER!! -ears up- Oh snap I think I'm gonna cry. -sniff- READ PLEASE! **

* * *

**Fire **Lord Ozai, dead. Killed by Avatar Aang.

Azula, Princess of the Fire Nation, dead. Killed by Prince Zuko now Fire Lord.

Hakoda, Leader of the Southern Water Tribe, dead. Killed by six firebenders.

Paku, waterbending master, dead. Killed by twenty fire benders.

Aang, The Avatar, the last airbender, dead. Killed by Azula, late princess of the Fire Nation.

The price had been so high. So much death and so much sadness.

* * *

**When **he told her, she'd been covered in soot and her hair was a tangled mess. She had blood leaking from cuts all over her body. And she had fallen to her knees and screamed. Tears poured out of her eyes and she cried shamelessly. He gathered her into his arms and held her tightly and said nothing. There was nothing he could say. She'd lost her father, and one of her most special friends whom she had loved like a brother. Lian's prediction had come true and she cried like she had the day she lost her mother and he held her. It was all he could do for her.

He remembered back a few seconds before Aang killed Ozai. His father had told him something before he died. He'd seen it in his eyes. He was sorry. He wanted to tell him he was sorry.

Tears fell from his own eyes and he buried his face in Katara's hair. His arms tightened around her and the two of them stood and cried for their losses.

**...**

**There **was so much death and devastation, so much sadness and pain despite the fact that they'd ended Ozai's tyranny. The cost was so damn high! Why did winning have to be so painful?

Toph was gone. No one knew where she went, she had not left Aang's body and when she did, nobody saw her leave. Search parties returned in vain, when she didn't want to be found, she wasn't. Then Appa and Momo went missing along with Aang's body, and they knew Toph had taken them.

Sokka had not left Sukki's side. She was sleeping due to an elixir Katara had given her and Sokka refused to leave her bedside no matter how many times the nurses assured him she would be okay.

"No," he would say. "I'm not leaving her again."

Jet and Yisu were found unconscious next to each other. They were both completely drained of all of their energy from Jet's tsunami and Yisu's song. Both of them were thankfully not hurt.

There was so much pain. So many tears. So much death. There was so much to grieve for but also so much to celebrate. Ozai's rule was over. The world would be purged of the Fire Nation, and peace and balance will be restored. Suffering will end. Soldiers will return home to their families and they will celebrate. But now, there are tears. Only tears and only grieving.

Later, they will celebrate.

* * *

**Epilogue**

**Yisu **and Jet married and moved away to a small Earth Kingdom town. Yisu was able to get a word to her grandmother where she was and how she was doing, and thankfully, her grandmother was not too mad, and she moved to live with them. Yisu's stuck up fiancé found another stuck up earth bender girl, and they married and lived a happy stuck up life.

Toph returned home a different girl than the one who'd left. She did not let her father tell her what to do for she'd already done more than he could ever imagine and she seemed to have lost her sarcastic tongue. Her heart had been broken and would not mend for many, many years. Appa and Momo stayed with her and nobody knew what she had done with Aang's body.

Katara gave her Gran-Gran her bracelet back and Kana and Ugoda met with Lian on the beach as the sun touched the ocean and the three friends were reunited. When the sun was gone, they were nowhere to be found, but some swear they saw three glowing lights disappear beneath the waves of the sea.

Ty Lee rejoined the circus and is quite happy. Mai returned home to her father and resumed living a bored life.

Katara and Sokka returned to the South Pole and found it a city as magnificent and beautiful as the one at the north. They became the first royal family in the South Pole in one hundred years.

Sokka and Sukki married, becoming the first royal couple from separate nations and they ruled together as Lord and Lady of the Southern Water Tribe.

Katara became ambassador to the Fire Nation from the Southern Water Tribe visiting Zuko frequently. But when he proposed, she refused him saying the Fire Nation would not accept a waterbender for Fire Lady and she was firm when he offered the abdicate the throne for her. She told him the Fire Nation needed him and he could not abandon his people for her. She continued to visit him and rumors flew around that they had an on going affair though there was no proof.

Then Zuko married Mai because he knew the Fire Nation needed an heir and Katara turned him down every time he'd asked her. Katara's last visit was the day before the wedding, after that, the visits ended. She returned to the South Pole but after a few months she realized her stomach was getting bigger...

**THE END!!**

**...**

**This has S-E-Q-U-E-L written all over it!! But I'm taking a break from this and starting on my sequel to HLIF! Look for "Saving Forever" coming this SUMMER!!**

**Thank you so much to everyone who stuck with me through this whole story and encouraged me to continue it! Thank you to all of you who read and reviewed ever chapter and thank you even to those of you who read but never reviewed! **

**I love you all and I hope you will continue to read my stories!**


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